sity  of  Califon 
them  Regional 
t>rary  Facility 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 


WOT.  OF  CALIF.  LIBRARY.  LOS  ANGELES 


THE  CAR  AND 
THE  LADY 


BY 

PERCY  F.    MEGARGEL 

AND 

GRACE   SARTWELL   MASON 


NEW  YORK 
THE   BAKER  AND   TAYLOR   COMPANY 

1908 


COPYRIGHT,  1908,  BY 
THE  BAKER  AND  TAYLOR  COMPANY 


Published,  August,  1908 


THE  PREMIER  PRESS 
NEW  YORK 


FOREWORD 

THE  true  history  of  a  transcontinental 
automobile  race  underlies  nearly  every  detail 
of  the  following  story.  It  is  a  romance  seen 
through  the  log-book  of  an  actual  journey. 
Hence  the  particulars  of  equipment  and  the 
description  of  difficulties  met  and  overcome. 
The  authors  hope  that,  with  the  progress  of 
good  highways  across  this  fascinating  con 
tinent  of  ours,  more  motorists  may  feel  the 
lure  of  the  American  road.  If  this  class  of 
traveler  finds  in  "The  Car  and  the  Lady"  a 
timely  word  which  will  make  the  way  easier 
they  will  feel  that  they  have  been  justified  in 
supplementing  the  purely  romantic  interest  of 
their  story  with  wisdom  gained  in  the  school 
of  experience. 


2131519 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 


The  Car  and  the  Lady 


CHAPTER   I 

AT  a  wide  front  window  of  the  Al 
bright  drawing-room  Jerry  Fleming 
stationed  himself  as  if  determined  to 
become  a  fixture  of  that  pleasant  spot.  An 
awning  kept  out  the  glare  of  the  August 
afternoon;  the  breeze  came  in  through  a 
green  screen  of  climbing  vines  and  potted 
geraniums;  behind  this  shaded  window  the 
noises  of  the  avenue  were  less  obtrusive, 
though  the  window  stood  wide  open  to  the 
out-of-doors.  By  long  habit  Jerry  Fleming 
knew  exactly  the  spot  where  one  should  stand 
to  command  the  street  below.  He  planted 
himself  at  this  point,  his  hands  thrust  in  his 
pockets,  his  good-looking  young  face  gloom 
ily  set,  obstinacy  in  his  athletic  shoulders.  The 
housemaid  who  had  ushered  him  in  looked  at 
his  back.  There  was  a  secret  sympathy  in  her 
Irish  eyes.  She  coughed  discreetly. 

"How  long  ago  did  Miss  Betty  go  out?" 
he  asked,  without  taking  his  eyes  from  the 
street. 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

She  told  him  two  hours;  and  moved  toward 
the  door. 

"Ah  .  .  .  when  do  you  expect  your 
sister  from  Ireland,  Nora?" 

She  came  back,  her  Irish  heart  touched  to 
confidences. 

"An'  sure  at  last,  Mr.  Jerry,  I've  sint  her 
the  tickets!  Next  mont'  it  is  she'll  be  here. 
Miss  Betty  says  she  can  stay  with  me  till  she 
finds  a  place!" 

"That's  good  of  Miss  Betty,  .  .  . 
where  did  you  say  she's  gone,  Nora?" 

Nora  twinkled  and  looked  at  him  with  un 
fathomable  sympathy.  "  She's  gone  out  in  a 
grand  new  automobile,  sir — one  the  Italian 
gintleman  sint  'round.  She — she's  been  out 
in  it  every  day  for  a  week,  sir.  She's  like  a 
colleen  with  a  new  toy.  An'  it  isn't  blamin' 
her  I'd  be,  either.  The  iligance  of  that  car, 
sir — the  red  leather  cushions — the  brass,  and 
thim  shiny  things — the— 

Jerry  Fleming  made  a  movement  of  pro 
found  disgust.  Gloom  of  a  deeper  shade  set 
tled  over  his  face.  " Brass  and  shiny  things! " 
he  muttered.  "  That's  all  a  girl  knows  about 
an  automobile!  Brass—  "  and  here  he  stopped 
to  listen  to  the  musical  notes  of  a  Gabriel 
horn,  which,  backed  up  by  the  exhaust  of  a 

2 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

powerful  four-cylinder  motor,  sounded  above 
the  noises  of  the  avenue. 

"That's  her!"  Nora  cried,  and  hastened 
into  the  hall. 

Jerry  leaned  eagerly  out  between  two  ge 
raniums  and  scanned  the  street.  Around  the 
corner  swept  a  car  with  rakish  bonnet  and  a 
conspicuous  expensiveness.  It  drew  up  at  the 
curb  as  impressively  as  an  ocean  liner  making 
her  dock.  It  stood  palpitating  in  a  high-bred 
and  elegant  sort  of  manner  while  an  exceed 
ingly  pretty  girl  stepped  out.  Jerry's  gaze 
devoured  the  girl,  but — it  must  be  confessed — 
only  for  an  instant.  It  was  the  car  that  drew 
his  eye,  a  critical,  motor-wise  eye,  and  held  it 
until  Betty  Albright  threw  open  the  drawing- 
room  door. 

She  hastened  across  the  room  with  a  frank 
hand  extended. 

"  Why,  Jerry,  old  fellow !  It's  been  an  age 
since  I've  seen  you!  Where' ve  you  been,  and 

how "  she  broke  off  suddenly  to  dart  to 

the  window. 

"Jerry,  quick!  Before  Pierson  drives  off! 
Isn't  it  a  beauty!  We've  been  out  Riverside 
Drive,  around  the  Monument  and  back 
through  the  park,  twenty  miles  in  thirty-two 
minutes!" 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

Jerry  put  his  hands  in  his  pockets  and 
stared  gloomily  over  her  shoulder  at  the  car. 

"Humph!  .  .  .  weight  all  up  front. 
I  suppose  you  went  chugging  down  into  every 
hole  in  the  road  between  here  and  the  Boule 
vard." 

"No,  we  didn't!"  she  retorted.  "At  least 
— there  weren't  any  holes.  I'm  too  truthful; 
I  must  say  the  roads  were  pretty  smooth." 

"Exactly!  Just  like  the  Continental  roads 
this  car  was  built  for.  You  try  to  run  that 
glittering  thing  across  country — over  West 
ern  roads,  for  instance,  and  you'd  find  it  would 
be  like  trying  to  sail  a  boat  with  the  ballast  all 
up  in  the  bows !  You'd  find  it " 

The  girl  lifted  up  two  mocking  hands. 
"  Now,  Jerry,  spare  me !  I  know  you've  got 
just  one  motor-idea  in  your  poor  head,  but 
really  you  can't  expect  me  to  swallow  it,  too! 
Now  can  you?  Here  I've  been  having  the 
most  heavenly  spins  in  a  love  of  an  Italian 
car — can  you  expect  me  to  turn  around  and 
pick  flaws  in  it?" 

He  looked  disgusted  at  the  very  name.  "  I 
tell  you,  Betty,  the  Italian  car  is  all  right  for 
good  roads,  but  how  would  it  show  up  west  of 
Chicago,  say?" 

Betty  stared.     "How  do  you  know?"  she 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY. 

cried  defiantly.  "  Have  you  ever  driven  your 
car  west  of  Chicago?" 

"No,  but  I  could!"  He  threw  back  his 
head  and  laughed  boyishly.  There  was  the 
sparkle  of  an  interesting  idea  in  his  eyes. 
"  Say,  Betty,  wouldn't  it  be  nuts  to  race  Van- 
nuccini  across  to  Portland,  Oregon?  Can't 
you  see  him  in  the  dust  of  the  Red  Desert  with 
that  gilt-edged  car  of  his?  Or  asking  for  ver 
mouth  in  Medicine  Bow,  Wyoming?  Oh,  by; 
Jove!  wouldn't  I  enjoy  that!" 

His  laugh  rang  out,  and  she  joined  him; 
but  it  was  noticeable  that  she  did  not  pursue 
the  subject.  Indeed,  the  color  had  mounted 
perceptibly  in  her  cheeks,  and  she  hinted,  a 
little  stiffly,  that  she  found  it  difficult  to  im 
agine  either  one  of  them  pegging  across  the 
continent.  Then  she  laughed. 

"Come  now,  Jerry,"  she  said,  "we  won't 
argue  about  things  when  we  haven't  seen  each 
other  for  six  weeks,  shall  we?  Find  a  com 
fortable  chair  and  tell  me  all  about  yourself. 
You've  been  up  in  Michigan,  your  mother 
told  me;  and  you  never  came  to  talk  things 
over,  or  say  good-by,  or  anything.  I  began 
to  think  maybe  you'd  found  another  pal, 
Jerry." 

As  she  talked  she  was  removing  her  veil. 

5 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

There  were  yards  of  it,  but  she  emerged  finally 
with  a  lovely  color  and  a  disheveled  head  of 
hair  that  seemed  to  have  caught  all  the  sun 
light  of  the  sunny  August  day.  She  was 
splendidly  alive ;  her  tall  young  figure  was  full 
of  graceful  strength;  she  walked  as  if  every 
step  was  a  joy;  the  grasp  of  her  hand  was  as 
frank  as  a  boy's ;  her  fine  gray  eyes  looked  out 
on  the  world  with  a  healthy  optimism. 

"I  hadn't,"  he  answered  briefly,  from  the 
window.  He  was  looking  at  the  car  again, 
critically.  "I'll  bet  Vannuccini's  engine  just 
eats  gasoline  when  he  gets  off  the  boulevards." 

The  girl  moved  across  the  room  to  where 
he  stood.  She  looked  up  at  him  with  an  amused 
lift  of  her  eyebrows.  "See  here,  Jerry  Flem 
ing,"  she  said  suddenly,  "what's  the  matter 
with  you  ?  Why — you  absurd  boy !  you  aren't 
jealous  of  the  new  Superba,  are  you?" 

She  faced  him  squarely,  her  head  thrown 
back  a  little,  her  gray  eyes  keenly  questioning, 
a  shade  of  disapproval  in  her  glance.  "  There's 
one  thing  I've  always  believed  of  you,  Jerry," 
she  went  on.  "I've  always  thought  you  a  real 
sportsman.  Do  you  think  it's  sportsmanlike 
to  refuse  a  word  of  approval  when  another 
man  does  a  bit  of  good  work?" 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

A  quick  flush  mounted  to  Jerry's  cheeks. 
He  walked  once  around  the  room  and  when  he 
came  back  to  lean  against  the  window  in  which 
she  was  sitting,  there  was  a  new  expression  in 
his  eyes. 

"Betty,"  he  said,  "you're  such  a  square  sort 
of  a  girl  yourself,  you  can't  understand  how  a 
fellow  like  myself  has  to  struggle  to  keep 
his  mouth  shut  when  he  sees  things  going  on 
that  he  would  just  like  to — to  knock!" 

A  little  cool  shadow  settled  over  the  girl's 
face.  She  had  a  way  of  lifting  her  chin  and 
looking  off  at  some  indefinite  spot  in  space 
when  she  disapproved  of  anything. 

"  I  suppose,"  she  said,  "you  mean  Mr.  Van- 
nuccini?" 

Jerry  reddened,  but  this  time  his  clean-cut 
jaw  set  stubbornly. 

'  Yes,"  he  said,  "  I  mean  Vannuccini.  Betty, 
it's  mighty  hard  to  be  generous  and  sports 
manlike  and  all  that  kind  of  thing  when  a 
fellow  has  cut  you  out  of  your  work  and — and 
when  it  looks  as  if  he  was  after  the — the  girl 
— you- 

Betty  suddenly  laughed.  Her  laughter  was 
capable  of  as  much  meaning  as  her  charming 
face;  it  could  be  as  disconcerting  as  her  up- 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

lifted  chin.  It  put  Mr.  Jerry  Fleming  neatly 
in  his  place,  as  a  person  who  had  presumed, 
just  a  trifle.  Jerry  colored,  but  he  could  only 
look  helplessly  at  her — at  the  lovely  curve  of 
her  chin  as  she  lifted  it,  at  the  alluring  way  she 
crinkled  up  her  eyes  when  she  laughed.  An 
old,  desperate  speculation  came  into  his  mind: 
what  would  she  do  if  he  should  seize  her  firmly 
— if  he  should  stop  her  laughter  with  a  kiss? 

"Betty!"  he  cried,  "don't  laugh  at  me! 
I'm  in  earnest  this  time." 

She  looked  contrite.  "  Dear  Jerry !  I  won't 
laugh  at  you  any  more,  if  you  won't  take 
things  for  granted.  Now,  tell  me  all  about  it. 
I  thought  you  would  surely  come  to  tell  me 
why  you  left  the  company;  but  you  didn't, 
and  I  had  to  get  all  my  news  from  Dad.  He 
was  furious,  Jerry!  You  know  Dad " 

"I'm  afraid  I  do,"  he  interrupted  with  a 
rueful  grin.  "  He  hasn't  much  use  for  me. 
has  he?" 

She  smiled  at  him  frankly.  "  Less  now  than 
ever!  You  see,  Jerry,  Dad's  a  man  who- has 
made  a  success  by  sticking  to  one  thing  like  a 
dog  to  a  bone.  A  test  of  character  with  Dad 
is  whether  a  man  sticks  or  whether  he  whiffles 
about,  as  he  calls  it.  Now,  he's  convinced  since 
you  left  the  Superba  people  that  you're  a 

8 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

hopeless  whiffler;  says  no  young  man  in  his 
right  mind  would  leave  an  old,  successful  com 
pany  just  to  air  his  own  ideas." 

Fleming's  boyish  face  took  on  an  expres 
sion  of  obstinacy  she  had  never  seen  there 
before;  she  looked  at  him  with  a  new  inter 
est. 

'You  don't  understand  the  situation, 
Betty,"  he  said  quietly.  "When  the  Superba 
people  adopted  Vannuccini's  designs  for  their 
new  model,  it  made  it  impossible  for  me  to 
stay  in  their  drafting-room  any  longer." 

"But,  why?" 

"  Because  I  should  have  to  give  up  my  own 
design  if  I  stayed ;  I  should  have  to  make  cars 
after  another  man's  model,  and  I  couldn't  do 
that,  Betty.  You  see,"  he  added  simply,  "I 
believe  in  my  own  design  and  I  don't  believe 
in  Vannuccini's." 

The  girl  looked  at  him  thoughtfully.  "  But, 
Jerry,"  she  said  slowly,  "  are  you  sure  you  are 
right?  Mr.  Vannuccini  is  known  all  over  Eu 
rope  as  a  motorist,  his  models  are  used  by  half 
the  big  factories  over  there.  Father  thinks 
he's  the  coming  designer  of  automobiles.  You 
know,  Jerry,  you're  not  a  Methuseleh  or  a 
Solomon  and  you've — well,  you've  had  some 
pretty;  wild  flights,  now,  haven't  you?  " 

9 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

Fleming  laughed.  "  I  suppose  you  mean 
that  little  air-ship  venture  last  summer?" 

;'Yes,  that,  and  others — a  whole  string  of 
them  since  you  left  college!  Do  you  mind 
telling  me  what  you  propose  to  do  now,  Don 
Quixote?" 

His  downcast  expression  vanished.  He 
thrust  his  hands  into  his  pockets  and  his  face 
became  confident  and  eager.  "I'm  going  to 
make  the  great  American  car,  my  girl!  I'm 
going  to  show  this  country — and  the  Italians! 
— that  the  American  manufacturer  is  the  one 
who  understands  American  roads.  I'm  going 
to  make  a  car  with  a  double-opposed  engine, 
amidships  in  the  body  with  a  piston  stroke  so 
long  that  it  will  climb  the  rocks  in  a  Maine 
pasture  and  eat  up  a  New  York  State  snow 
drift — a  car  that  will  leave  your  Italian  four- 
cylinder  swell  far  to  the  rear  on  the  average 
American  road!" 

"That's  a  large  order,"  she  smiled,  "and 
will  take  money." 

"  I  know,"  he  said.  "  You  remember  grand 
father  left  me  twenty-five  thousand?  Well, 
that's  gone  in.  Walters  and  Cushman  and  I 
have  bought  a  plant  up  in  Michigan — small 
affair,  of  course ;  but  a  start.  They've  allowed 
me  an  equal  amount  of  stock  for  my  design, 

10 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

and  we're  going  to  show  people,  your  father 
included,  what  a  spunky,  live,  all- American 
car  can  do  next  year!" 

Betty's  eyes  sparkled.  "Good  for  you, 
Jerry!"  she  cried.  "It  will  make  Dad  furi 
ous;  but  I  like  it!  I  like  you  when  you  talk 
that  way!  I  like  a  man  that  has  'never-say- 
die'  for  his  motto,  anyway.  Here's  my] 
hand!" 

She  laughingly  held  out  her  firm  little  hand. 
Fleming  took  it  in  his  large  sunburnt  one  and 
looked  at  it  tenderly.  As  he  stood  beside  her 
chair,  he  himself  was  very  well  worth  looking 
at,  with  his  clean-cut  eager  face,  and  his  ath 
letic  shoulders. 

"  I  wish  you  were  giving  it  to  me  for  keeps, 
Betty,"  he  said,  soberly.  "I'd  take  mighty 
good  care  of  it.  I'd " 

She  shook  her  head.  "  This  is  the  nine 
teenth  time,"  she  said,  lightly.  "  You  know  on 
the  last  occasion  you  promised  you  wouldn't 
do  it  again — not  for  a  year  at  least.  I  thought 
by  that  time  there  would  be  another  girl, 
Jerry." 

"I  knew  better,"  he  said.  "Why,  Betty, 
you  dear!  I've  been  in  love  with  you  ever 
since  Miss  Harvey's  dancing  class,  when  you 
wore  those  two  molasses  candy  braids  down 

11 


THE     CAR    AND     THE 


your  back.  Do  you  remember?  There's  never 
been  another  girl  since,  and  there  never  will 
be  another,  Betty.  Look  here,  dear  —  there's 
something  I  came  up  here  this  afternoon  to 
ask  you.  I  know  it's  the  nineteenth  time,  but 
—  isn't  there  any  hope  for  me,  Betty?  I'm  go 
ing  to  leave  next  week  for  the  factory  ;  I  won't 
be  seeing  you  very  often  now  —  and  I  could 
work  like  twenty  men  if  I  could  only  have  one 
spark  of  encouragement  from  you,  dear. 
Can't  you  give  me  a  little  bit  of  hope,  Betty?" 

The  girl  looked  at  him  with  a  troubled  ex 
pression  in  her  candid  gray  eyes. 

"Jerry,"  she  said,  "I  like  you  awfully;  but 
somehow  I  never  can  take  you  quite  seriously. 
You  see  I'm  Dad's  daughter.  Dad  and  I 
have  always  been  pals  and  what  he  thinks  I 
think,  because  I  believe  in  him.  I  know  he's 
crusty,  Jerry,  and  he's  maybe  not  always  so 
polite  as  he  might  be,  but  he's  the  straightest, 
finest  man  I  know,  and  I  can't  help  but  re 
spect  his  opinions.  He  —  I  must  be  truthful, 
mustn't  I?  —  he  doesn't  believe  in  you,  Jerry; 
says  you  haven't  made  good  -  " 

"But,  Betty,  don't  you  believe  in  me?  I'm 
going  to  make  good  now.  If  I  knew  I  was 
working  for  you  I  could  do  anything,  dear 
little  girl!" 

12 


THE     CAR     AND     THE     LADY 

She  looked  at  him  gravely.  '  You  must  do 
something  first"  she  said.  "No  woman  can 
supply  a  man  with  backbone  and  the  power  to 
stick.  You  show  me  first!"  she  added  smil 
ingly;  and  Jerry  remarked  how  very  like  her 
father's  was  Betty  Albright's  square  little 
chin.  But  there  was  something  behind  her 
words  which  set  his  blood  to  galloping.  He 
caught  her  hand  in  an  eager  clasp. 

"If  I  show  you,  Betty,"  he  whispered,  "if 
I  make  good — will  you  marry  me — will  you, 
dearest?" 

For  the  least  fraction  of  a  second  she 
swayed  toward  him;  then  with  an  elusive 
laugh  she  fluttered  away  to  the  deep  embrasure 
of  a  window  overlooking  the  street.  Flem 
ing's  face  lost  its  glow,  but  he  followed  her 
resolutely,  and  taking  hold  of  her  shoulders 
turned  her  face  toward  his. 

"  It  isn't  Vannuccini,  is  it,  Betty? "  he  asked, 
his  voice  dropping. 

She  turned  away  from  him,  but  not  before 
he  had  seen  the  faintest  color  rise  in  her  cheeks. 

"  I  don't  know,"  she  said.  "  It  may  be  Mr. 
Vannuccini — and  it  may  be  you!  No,  you're 
not  to  have  my  hand  on  any  such  slight  pre 
text.  It  wouldn't  do,  anyway,  for  Signor 
Vannuccini  himself  is  coming  up  the  avenue ! " 

13 


CHAPTER  II 

NO  shop  talk!"  Betty  had  warned 
him  swiftly  as  she  moved  across  the 
room  to  give  her  hand  to  the  last 
arrival. 

The  injunction  was  not  necessary,  for  the 
Italian's  drawing-room  manner  always  threw 
Jerry  Fleming  into  a  state  of  dumb  rage. 
When  Vannuccini  bent  over  Miss  Albright's 
hand  with  a  murmur  of  pleasure,  Fleming  felt 
moved  to  retire  into  a  remote  corner  and  kick 
the  furniture.  He  was  fathoms  deep  in  love 
with  Betty  Albright;  but  if  he  had  practiced 
for  a  month  he  could  not  have  expressed  as 
much  admiration  in  a  long  speech  as  the  Italian 
had  just  conveyed  in  a  handshake. 

And  he  hated  tea.  To  stand  and  balance  a 
fiendishly  slippery  cup  and  saucer,  trying  not 
to  look  ferocious,  reduced  him  to  a  state  of 
smoldering  irritation  in  which  he  might  at 
any  moment  forsake  the  social  amenities  and 
become  the  primitive  man,  openly  casting  de 
fiance  in  the  teeth  of  his  rival. 

"  Please  sit  down,  both  of  you,"  said  Betty, 
scenting  danger.  But  Jerry,  monumentally 

14 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

dignified,  would  not  sit  down  as  long  as  Van- 
nuccini  stood;  Vannuccini  knew  he  showed  to 
advantage  standing,  and  so  they  balanced  their 
teacups  on  opposite  sides  of  the  table. 

"I  believe  I  had  the  pleasure  of  watching 
you  trying  out  a  new  car  on  the  Boulevard 
this  morning,  monsieur,"  remarked  Vannuc 
cini,  affably. 

:<  Very  likely,"  returned  Fleming,  briefly. 

The  Italian's  eyebrows  lifted  the  least  frac 
tion  of  an  inch.  He  turned  toward  Betty 
writh  a  movement  that  had  the  effect  of  a  toler 
ant  shrug.  Betty  felt  herself  grow  warm. 
She  was  ashamed  of  Fleming's  brusquerie — 
and  deep  in  her  heart  ashamed  of  herself  for 
being  ashamed.  But  the  woman  is  not  born 
who  does  not  like  the  man  she  admires  to  have 
plenty  of  savoir  faire.  Vannuccini  was  a  re 
sourceful,  polished  cosmopolite.  His  man 
ners,  moreover,  were  like  his  clothes — the  best 
that  could  be  manufactured,  and  always  skill 
fully  assumed  with  regard  to  time  and  place. 
In  the  morning  business  hours  he  wore  Eng 
lish  tweeds  and  a  hearty  frankness;  at  dinner 
with  a  heavy  stockholder  he  glistened  in  silky 
broadcloth  and  a  deferential  wit;  at  afternoon 
tea  with  ladies  (he  never  used  the  word  wom 
en)  his  frock-coat,  his  boutonmere,  his  gaiters 

15 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

and  his  manner  were  all  Italian,  subtly  caress 
ing,  with  a  delicate  suggestion  of  melancholy 
and  a  soup9on  of  daring.  The  difference  be 
tween  the  two  men  was  like  the  difference  in 
their  hands — Vannuccini's  slender,  nervous,  ex 
quisitely  manicured;  Fleming's  sinewy  and 
strong,  brown  from  the  sun,  the  nails  broken 
and  stained  with  the  work  of  a  man  who  not 
only  drives  his  own  car  but  who  can  rebuild  it 
from  its  parts. 

"And  you,  mademoiselle,  did  the  new  Su- 
perba  please  you  this  afternoon?"  Vannuc- 
cini  was  asking. 

''Immensely!"  cried  Betty,  all  the  more 
fervently  because  she  was  aware  of  Fleming's 
dour  glance  upon  her.  Signor  Vannuccini  ex 
pressed  himself  as  delighted;  he  had  come,  he 
said,  to  propose  an  excursion  through  the 
Catskills  for  the  following  week.  Did  Miss 
Albright  think  she  could  persuade  her  father 
and  her  friend  Mrs.  Whitman  to  undertake  a 
little  tour  with  him  in  the  new  car? 

At  this  point  Jerry  put  down  his  cup  and 
began  to  walk  about  the  room. 

"I  am  sure  I  can! "  declared  Betty,  with  an 
eye  to  Jerry's  back.  "  How  very  nice  of  you 
to  think  of  it!" 

"It  is  mademoiselle  who  confers  a  happi- 
16 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

ness,"  murmured  Vannuccini.  "  Shall  we  say 
Tuesday  of  next  week?  We  can  explore  your 
beautiful  Catskills  and  return  by  way  of  the 
Delaware  Water  Gap,  if  you  like." 

"  It  sounds  lovely ;  but  I  positively  must  be 
back  in  town  Friday— 

"But,  of  course!"  cried  Vannuccini  gaily, 
"with  the  new  Superba  that  is  entirely  pos 
sible.  On  Friday  at  any  hour  you  name  I  can 
restore  you  to  your  friends." 

Jerry  returned  to  the  tea  table;  there  was 
the  light  of  battle  in  his  eye.  '  You  can't  do 
it,"  he  remarked,  bluntly. 

Betty  bit  her  lip;  and  Vannuccini  turned 
upon  him  a  politely  incredulous  eye. 

"You  think  not,  monsieur?  I  am  interested 
to  know  why— 

"  Because  your  car  is  not  built  for  the  con 
ditions  you  will  find  just  now  in  the  Catskills. 
We  have  had  a  rainy  month;  the  roads  are 
heavy.  Your  car  weighs  too  much.  With  the 
engine  in  front  it  is  not  balanced  for  the  kind 
of  roads  you  will  find  up  there.  You  might 
make  the  run  in  six  days,  but  you  can't  make 
it  in  three." 

Vannuccini  had  opened  his  lips  to  reply 
when  a  dry  chuckle  from  the  doorway  inter 
rupted  him.  Betty's  father,  Hiram  D.  Al- 

17 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

bright  himself,  had  entered  in  time  to  catch 
the  last  of  the  conversation.  He  was  a  small 
man,  with  a  large  head,  and  incredibly  keen 
eyes  under  a  gray  penthouse  of  eyebrow.  His 
glance  at  Jerry  was  like  the  flash  of  polished 
steel. 

"  Perhaps  you  could  do  it  yourself,  Flem 
ing,"  he  said  dryly. 

A  flush  burned  through  the  tan  on  Flem 
ing's  cheek.  "  I  am  sure  I  could,  sir,"  he  said 
steadily.  "I've  just  made  the  Catskill  run, 
and  I  am  certain  the  new  Superba,  with  its 
engine  under  the  bonnet,  cannot  take  those  bad 
roads  at  the  speed  my  Nero  made  over  them 
last  week." 

"Don't  agree  with  you,"  said  the  old  man 
brusquely,  with  a  gesture  that  disposed  of 
Fleming  and  his  assumptions  for  good  and  all. 
He  refused  Betty's  offer  of  a  cup  of  tea,  and 
would  have  gone  on  his  way  without  further 
.parley,  when  Vannuccini's  next  words  stopped 
him. 

"Perhaps  Mr.  Fleming  will  do  Mr.  Al 
bright  and  myself  the  honor  to  prove  what  he 
has  just  said  about  his  car?"  His  tone  cased 
the  remark  in  silk.  "  I  am  at  your  service  any 
time,  monsieur."  He  turned  to  smile  at  Betty. 
"It  would  be  amusing,  would  it  not,  made- 

18 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

moiselle? — a  little  race  from  here  to — shall  we 
say  Buffalo,  and  back? " 

There  was  something  in  the  tone  and  in  the 
Italian's  glance  at  Betty,  as  if  they  two  had 
found  an  affair  of  quiet  amusement,  that  sent 
the  blood  to  Fleming's  head.  He  was  aware 
of  an  ironical  half  contempt  in  the  way  Hiram 
Albright  looked  at  him;  he  saw  Betty  color 
as  if  she  already  expected  him  to  fail.  The 
fighting  spirit  in  him  rose. 

"  So  short  a  run,"  he  said  as  calmly  as  he 
could.  "  Make  it  from  New  York  to  Port 
land,  Oregon,  and  it  will  be  worth  while." 

Vannuccini  stared.  "You  are  ambitious," 
he  said.  "  May  I  ask  what  you  have  to  stake 
on  such  a  contest?" 

It  was  not  so  much  a  question  as  a  veiled 
taunt.  A  silence  fell  on  the  room.  Mr.  Al 
bright  watched  them,  bright-eyed  and  keen; 
Vannuccini  looked  at  Fleming,  and  Fleming 
looked  at  Betty.  Her  eyes  were  bright  with 
some  enigmatic  excitement.  Fleming  knew  in 
that  instant  that  he  stood  on  trial  to  win  or 
lose  the  respect  of  this  girl  who  was  more  to 
him  than  anything  else  in  the  world.  For  an 
instant  he  felt  the  heart-clutching  fear  of  the 
player  who  puts  everything  he  possesses  on  the 
red  or  the  black.  Then  his  brain  cleared. 

19 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

"  I  will  stake  my  interest  in  our  new  factory 
against  $25,000,"  he  said,  "  on  the  outcome  of 
a  trial  between  your  Superba  and  my  Nero, 
the  route  to  be  from  New  York  to  Portland. 
Do  you  take  me?" 

The  two  men  opposite  him  looked  at  each 
other  briefly.  "  Agreed !  "  said  Mr.  Albright 
with  a  dry  laugh.  "  It  will  be  the  best  kind 
of  a  try-out  for  the  new  Superba,  and  will 
settle — several  things." 

His  glance  rested  humorously  for  an  instant 
on  his  daughter ;  then  he  said :  "  Get  me  a 
pencil  and  note  book,  daughter.  We  may  as 
well  agree  on  the  conditions  of  the  race — be 
fore  Fleming  changes  his  mind." 

"I  shall  not  change  my  mind,"  said  Jerry 
quietly.  "  Shall  we  say  the  fifteenth  of  Au 
gust  for  the  start? " 


20 


CHAPTER   III 

MANY  times  before  the  day  set  for  the 
beginning    of    the   transcontinental 
run  Fleming  saw  in  his  mind's  eye 
the  flushed,   triumphant  face  of  Betty  Al 
bright  as  she  had  whispered  to  him  after  the 
signing    of    his    compact    with  Vannuccini: 
"  I'm  glad  they  couldn't  bluff  you  out,  Jerry. 
You've  got  your  chance,  now." 

Yes,  he  had  got  his  chance;  and  he  was 
straining  every  nerve  and  sinew,  every  ounce 
of  brain,  all  the  ingenuity  and  foresight  he 
possessed  to  make  the  best  of  it.  There  had 
been  a  lively  quarter  of  an  hour  with  his 
partners,  Walters  and  Cushman,  when  he  laid 
before  them  immediately  upon  his  arrival  in 
Lansing  the  thing  he  had  undertaken  to  ac 
complish.  They  had  not  hesitated  to  tell  him 
they  considered  him  "up  in  the  air!  "  When 
sarcasm  and  angry  protest  failed  they  fell 
back  on  a  line  of  patient  reasoning.  In  the 
midst  of  their  eloquence  Fleming  had  said, 
decisively : 

"  Look  here,  you  fellows  don't  know  a  good 
thing  when  you  see  it.  We've  started  a  new 
factory;  and  we've  got  the  whole  field  to  con- 

21 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

quer,  haven't  we?  The  big  fellows  and  the 
old-established  makers  have  their  hundreds  of 
thousands  to  spend  in  display  advertising  for 
next  season,  while  we — well,  you  know  what 
kind  of  a  splash  we  can  make  with  our  present 
resources.  The  Superba  people  are  prepar 
ing  to  fight  us  tooth  and  nail  with  their  new 
model;  and  we've  got  the  foreign  machines 
to  buck  against  as  well.  It  strikes  me  that 
what  we  want  right  here  is  publicity,  if  we're 
to  get  in  out  of  the  rain — and  more  publicity 
than  we  can  afford  to  buy  through  the  thou- 
sand-dollar-a-page  magazines,  too!  Now,  see 
here:  this  is  my  scheme.  .  .  ." 

He  drew  a  chair  in  front  of  a  map  stretched 
on  his  desk,  but  Walters,  whose  mind  had  am 
bled  along  just  a  little  behind  the  argument, 
interrupted  with  an  exasperated: 

"  But  the  risk,  Fleming — the  risk!  If  you 
lose  this  race — and  you  will,  you  know! — you 
let  this  Italian  in  for  a  controlling  interest  in 
our  factory.  Good  Lord!  you  might  as  well 
sell  out  to  the  Superba  people  and  be  done 
with  it!" 

Fleming  looked  at  his  senior  partner;  his 
eyes  were  steel  colored. 

"  I  don't  calculate  on  losing — not  this  trip, 
Walters,"  he  said. 

22 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

And  Cushman,  who  spoke  little  during  the 
interview,  had  looked  at  their  junior  partner 
keenly.  A  speculative  interest  began  to 
gather  in  his  eyes. 

"Wait  a  minute,  Walters,"  he  said  quietly. 
"  I  believe  Jerry's  got  hold  of  something 
worth  listening  to." 


Coming  up  on  the  boat  to  Detroit  the  night 
before,  Fleming  had  been  so  full  of  his  pro 
ject  that  sleep  was  out  of  the  question.  In 
the  starlit  night  he  had  paced  up  and  down 
the  deck,  every  scene  in  the  Albright  drawing- 
room  reenacted  in  his  mind.  In  that  quiet 
hour  he  measured  all  that  he  risked;  and  he 
measured— though  he  felt  it  to  be  immeasur 
able — what  might  be  his  if  he  but  risked  suc 
cessfully.  For  in  a  day  he  seemed  to  have 
grown  from  a  boy  to  a  man,  with  a  man's 
judgment  and  a  man's  insight.  He  under 
stood  as  he  had  never  done  in  all  his  boyish 
wooing  the  need  in  Betty  Albright's  nature 
which  demanded  that  the  man  she  gave  herself 
to  should  "make  good." 

In  the  darkness  he  smiled  at  the  words  and 
at  the  remembrance  of  the  fearless  lift  of  her 
square  little  chin.  Well,  if  it  was  in  him  to 

23 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

do  it,  he  was  going  to  make  good  for  Betty's 
sake.  What  risks  he  ran  in  this  most  serious 
issue  of  his  life  he  would  not  dwell  upon, 
though  the  facts  were  brought  home  to  him 
by  an  accidental  meeting  on  the  boat  with  an 
old  friend,  a  man  many  years  his  senior,  who 
out  of  a  long  and  varied  experience  as  a  mo 
torist  gave  him  a  frank  opinion  of  the  under 
taking. 

"Well,  your  nerve  is  perfect,"  Barry,  his 
friend,  had  laughed.  "Do  you  happen  to  be 
up  on  the  transcontinental  route?  No?  And 
you've  put  up  your  twenty  horse-power  Nero 
against  a  four-cylinder,  forty  horse-power 
machine!  Why,  my  boy,  on  the  good  roads 
between  New  York  and  Chicago  your  Italian 
car  will  leave  you  so  far  behind  you'll  never 
catch  up." 

Fleming  looked  unconvinced.  "  I  may 
have  to  take  his  dust  on  the  good  roads,"  he 
rejoined,  "  but  don't  forget  this  run  is  across 
Wyoming,  Idaho,  and  Oregon.  My  car  is 
a  bulldog  on  bad  roads,  and  with  a  Schebler 
carburetor  a  steep  gradient  is  a  picnic  to  that 
Nero  Mountaineer  of  mine.  That's  why  I 
stipulated  the  finish  should  be  in  Portland, 
Oregon.  Where  I'm  going  to  win  out  over 
that  gilt-edged  car  of  Vannuccini's  is  there, 

24 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

in  the  climb  over  the  Cascades,  or  working 
through  the  desert  in  Wyoming." 

The  older  man  admitted  that  there  was  some 
truth  in  this  view;  but  he  added,  seriously: 

'  You  don't  know  what  you're  in  for,  Jerry. 
West  of  Cheyenne  there  are  two-hundred-mile 
stretches  where  you  won't  find  enough  sweet 
water  to  fill  a  teacup ;  where  the  trail  fades  out 
and  you  will  have  to  chop  your  way  through 
sage  brush.  You'll  sleep  in  your  clothes  many 
a  night  and  go  hungry  many  a  day.  And 
then,  when  you've  made  perhaps  three-quar 
ters  of  the  way,  a  broken  axle  or  cracked  cylin 
der  may  lose  you  your  race  by  twenty-four 
hours.  You  take  too  many  chances,  my  boy; 
better  give  it  up,  that's  my  advice  to  you." 

Fleming  rose  from  his  chair  to  stare  down 
at  the   dark  rush  of   water   past  the   bows. 

'  There's  no  giving  up  for  me,  now,"  he  said. 

'This  thing  has  got  hold  of  me.  I'm  not 
afraid  of  hardships  and  I  believe  in  my  car. 
I've  got  to  win  out.  To  me  it — it  means  a 
good  deal  more  than  twenty-five  thousand.  If 
I  lose,  I  lose  something  I've  wanted  ever  since 
I  was  a  boy  going  to  Prep  school — and  Miss 
Harvey's  dancing  class!" 

He  laughed  as  if  half  ashamed  of  his  ad 
mission;  but  he  added,  soberly:    "Maybe  you 

25 


THE     CAR1    AND     THE     LADY 

think  I'm  an  irresponsible  fool  to  rush  into  this 
thing,  Barry,  but  I  believe  it's  the  best  chance 
of  my  life  to  show  what's  in  me." 

Tfee  older;  man  was  silent  for  a  time,  and 
then  he  said  slowly: 

"  Well,  I  guess  there  comes  a  time  in  every 
man's  life  when  it's  wise  to  be  foolish — when 
he's  got  to  play  high  if  he's  to  win  the  game. 
If  you're  sure  this  is  your  chance,  Jerry,  take 
it  in  the  best  style  possible.  Now,  you'll  want 
a  complete  list  of  the  equipment  needed.  I'll 
get  it  for  you  from  Whitman,  who  made  the 
transcontinental  run  in  an  Oldsmobile  a  couple 
of  years  ago.  Follow  his  advice;  never  neg 
lect  a  detail;  don't  take  anything  for  granted 
— and  may  the  luck  of  the  foolhardy  go  with 
you!" 

When  he  left  the  boat  Fleming  had  felt 
keyed  up  to  a  tremendous  pitch  of  energy.  It 
was  well  that  it  should  be  so,  for  he  had  a 
scant  fortnight  before  him  in  which  to  attend 
to  a  thousand  details.  Next  in  importance  to 
his  interview  with  his  partners  was  the  choice 
of  a  mechanic  to  go  with  him  on  the  long  drive. 
On  this  point  Fleming  felt  he  had  no  need  of 
advice;  he  knew  the  man  he  wanted,  and  two 
hours  after  he  arrived  in  Lansing  he  was  deep 
in  talk  with  a  blue-eyed,  sandy-haired  young 

26 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

fellow,  who  wore  at  the  moment  overalls  and  a 
mechanic's  jumper  and  listened  eagerly  to  the 
plans  Fleming  unfolded. 

Sid  Johnston,  with  his  cheerful  air  of  instant 
readiness  for  love  or  war,  was  the  ideal  sharer 
of  such  a  venture  as  his  employer  proposed. 
He  knew  and  loved  every  inch  of  his  car;  he 
was  as  sanguine  as  Fleming  himself;  he  was 
keen  and  resourceful,  and  Fleming  knew  one 
occasion  at  least  when  Sid  Johnston  had  shown 
himself  recklessly  devoted  to  his  employer's 
cause.  It  was  during  a  famous  race  that  the 
hattery  box  in  Fleming's  car  had  broken  loose. 
For  forty  miles,  wrhile  the  car  skidded  and 
swerved  dangerously,  Johnston  had  held  the 
box  between  his  knees,  averting  a  catastrophe 
and  making  it  possible  for  Fleming  to  come  in 
second  at  the  finish.  On  that  occasion  a  fran 
tically  cheering  crowd  had  lifted  the  sandy- 
haired  little  mechanic  from  the  car,  and  Flem 
ing  felt  that  their  enthusiasm  was  well  merited. 
As  he  had  divided  with  Sid  the  triumphs  of 
that  memorable  contest,  so  he  had  shared  with 
him  the  adventures  and  vicissitudes  of  many 
others.  They  had  come  to  regard  each  other  as 
comrades  in  adventure  rather  than  as  employer 
and  emploj^ee. 

When  Sid  listened  to  Fleming's  account  of 
27 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

his  new  undertaking  his  eyes  glistened  with 
approval.  He  heard  the  call  of  the  road,  and 
instantly  his  mind  leaped  forward  to  grapple 
with  the  problems  that  were  as  so  many  joys  to 
him. 

"Say!"  he  exclaimed,  "it's  a  sure  thing! 
I'm  with  you,  Boss.  And  I've  got  an  engine 
down  in  the  testing-room  that's  a  little  beauty. 
Say,  if  you'll  come  down  now  we'll  try  it  out 
with  the  brake  test.  Why,  it's  a  cinch — what 
we'll  do  with  that  engine  in  the  old  Moun 
taineer!  " 

Thus,  forty-eight  hours  after  Fleming  said 
good-by  to  Betty  Albright  in  New  York,  his 
preparations  for  the  race  were  well  under  way. 
The  choosing  of  the  engine  he  was  to  use  in 
his  car  had  been  a  crucial  moment;  for  on  the 
perfection  of  this,  the  heart  of  his  car,  would 
depend  in  a  large  measure  his  success  or  fail 
ure.  For  this  reason  the  commonly  used 
dynamo  test  was  not  depended  upon.  Under 
Fleming's  critical  eye  Johnston  applied  to  en 
gine  after  engine  what  automobilists  call  the 
"  brake  test,"  in  which  by  means  of  a  long  lever 
a  block  of  wood  is  forced  down  upon  the  fly 
wheel  of  the  engine;  attached  to  this  lever  are 
scales  which  record  each  added  pound  of  re 
sistance,  and  according  as  the  engine  runs 

28 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

smoothly  or  "dies"  under  the  test  its  power 
and  quality  are  recorded. 

In  the  engine  finally  chosen  Fleming  felt 
the  utmost  confidence.  As  he  worked  day  by 
day  over  each  detail  of  his  car  and  equipment 
his  spirits  were  high  with  the  certainty  that 
with  such  a  will  to  succeed  and  nothing  left  to 
chance  he  could  not  fail.  From  early  morn 
ing  till  late  at  night  he  and  Johnston  worked, 
testing  the  parts  of  his  car  as  it  was  taken  to 
pieces  and  reassembled,  studying  the  problem 
of  additional  gasoline  and  water  tanks,  of 
clearance  and  balance.  In  the  frame  of  the  car 
was  built  a  three-inch  windlass,  with  a  crank 
and  ratchet  on  either  side  and  with  two  hun 
dred  feet  of  wire  cable  wound  about  the  drum. 
This  part  of  their  equipment  would  come  into 
play  when  there  should  be  a  steep  river  bank 
to  climb  or  an  arroyo  to  get  out  of. 

To  lessen  the  dangers  of  mountain  climbing 
sharpened  sprags  were  attached  to  the  rear 
axle  and  an  emergency  brake  to  the  flywheel. 
A  cleverly  constructed  rack  on  the  running- 
board  carried  a  pail  and  shovel,  besides  extra 
gasoline  and  water  tanks.  A  special  device  of 
Fleming's  was  a  set  of  sand-tires.  Made  of 
canvas  stuffed  with  cotton-waste  they  strapped 
around  the  rims,  the  Goodrich  pneumatics  fill- 

29 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

ing  out  the  center  of  the  sand-tires,  thus  giv 
ing  to  each  wheel  a  tread  of  several  additional 
inches.  A  pair  of  oil  lamps  and  a  six-inch 
Solar  searchlight  connected  to  a  double  gen 
erator  were  installed.  On  the  dashboard  were 
placed  a  gradometer  to  register  the  percentage 
of  the  grades  and  a  Warner  autometer  to  in 
dicate  the  rate  of  speed  and  distance  traveled. 

Finally,  every  nut  in  the  car  was  tightened 
as  much  as  possible  without  stripping  the 
threads,  a  hole  drilled  through  the  end  of  each 
bolt  and  cotter  pins  inserted.  Every  pre 
caution  was  taken,  every  ounce  of  ingenuity 
the  two  men  possessed  was  used  to  meet  any 
possible  emergency;  and  Fleming  felt  the 
pride  of  the  successful  shipbuilder  as  he  super 
intended  the  last  bit  of  work  on  the  car. 

Three  days  before  the  fifteenth  the  Moun 
taineer  was  shipped  by  express  to  New  York. 
After  careful  study  of  Whitman's  suggestions 
as  to  equipment  Fleming  drew  up  a  list  of  the 
articles  to  be  stowed  in  the  tonneau  before  they 
left  New  York.  For  the  sake  of  the  motorist 
who  may  be  interested  in  the  needs  of  the 
transcontinental  driver  the  list  follows: 

Rubber  hats,  shirts,  gloves  and  hip  boots; 
high  cut  leather  shoes,  flannel  shirts,  sweaters, 
army;  blankets,  leather  coats  and  corduroy 

30 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

trousers.  Pail,  axe,  spade,  coil  of  emergency 
wire,  rope,  pulleys,  State  maps,  repeating  rifle, 
Colt's  automatic  revolvers.  Spit-fire  spark 
plugs,  oil  gun,  blow  torch,  folding  jack,  extra 
set  wirings,  short  piece  garden  hose  for  repair 
ing  water  pipes,  Weed  tire  chains,  pump,  tire 
irons,  extra  chain,  monkey  wrenches,  pipe 
wrenches,  small  anvil,  set  files,  extra  valve 
springs,  Gabriel  horn,  bar  soft  steel,  extra 
batteries,  Robert's  ammeter,  extra  brake  bands, 
extra  brake  linings,  half  dozen  inner  tubes, 
two  extra  Goodrich  casings  fitted  with  Bailey 
tread,  sprags  for  rear  axle,  graphite,  extra 
gasoline  tank,  Hartford  shock  absorbers,  ba 
rometer,  compass,  extra  dust  caps,  assortment 
bolts,  nuts  and  cotter  pins.  Mess  kit. 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  fourteenth  Fleming 
called  at  the  Albrights'  to  say  good-by  to 
Betty.  He  felt  that  fate  had  dealt  him  a 
hard  blow  when  he  found  Vannuccini  also 
making  his  adieux.  Betty  was  in  high  spirits ; 
she  declared  that  she  would  be  at  Times  Square 
to  see  them  off.  Fleming  reminded  her  that 
the  hour  for  starting  was  five  in  the  morning. 
It  made  no  difference,  she  would  see  them  start 
if  it  was  three! 

And  she  did.  In  Jerry's  mind  the  memories 
of  that  morning  hour  remained  for  the  rest  of 

31 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

his  life.  The  streets  were  not  yet  filled  with 
their  human  tide  and  the  vicinity  wore  a  wait 
ing  look  when  Betty  and  her  father  drove  up 
to  the  rendezvous.  Fleming  and  Sid  were  al 
ready  there,  their  car  looking  like  an  old  cam 
paigner  with  its  tarpaulin-covered  tonneau  and 
extra  tires;  and  just  as  a  clock  near  by  struck 
five  Vannuccini's  big  red  Superba  whizzed  up 
the  street.  Betty,  as  cool  and  pretty  as  a 
flower  in  her  lavender  linen,  beamed  upon  them 
from  her  electric  runabout.  Even  her  father 
showed  that  he  felt  the  interest  of  the  moment, 
and  the  two  mechanics  looked  each  other  over 
with  critical  eyes.  The  hour  had  come  for 
farewells. 

Vannuccini,  very  handsome  in  faultless 
French  touring  clothes,  leaped  from  his  car 
and  said  his  good-by  in  a  low  voice  as  he  bent 
over  Betty's  hand;  Fleming  descended  more 
slowly,  some  of  the  boyish  excitement  fading 
out  of  his  face  as  he  watched  them. 

"  Good-by,  Betty,"  he  said,  trying  to  make 
his  voice  matter-of-fact.  Then  his  eyes  met 
hers.  "  I'm  going  to  make  good!"  he  added 
— "  for  you." 

She  smiled  at  him;  but  he  could  not  help 
seeing  that  her  eyes  wandered  to  where  Van 
nuccini  was  climbing  to  the  driver's  seat  in  his 

32 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

car.  He  admitted  to  himself  that  the  signer 
with  his  beautiful  red  Superba  was  enough  to 
catch  and  hold  any  girl's  eye.  His  heart  sank, 
but  a  stubborn  look  came  into  his  eyes  as  he 
took  hold  of  the  starting  crank.  In  another 
instant  they  would  have  been  off,  but  Betty 
suddenly  stood  up  and  called  after  them  gaily. 

" I've  got  an  idea!  "  she  cried.  "  I'm  going 
to  Batavia  to-morrow  to  visit  my  aunt,  and  I'll 
take  dinner  with  the  one  who  gets  there  first!" 

"Good!  until  Batavia,  au  revoir!"  re 
sponded  iVannuccini. 

"See  you  in  Batavia,  Betty!"  called  Flem 
ing,  throwing  in  his  clutch,  and  the  long  race 
was  on. 


33 


CHAPTER  IV 

SID  JOHNSTON  to  his  friend  Terry 
Moore. 
BATAVIA,  August  17th. 
DEAR  TERRY: 

Don't  ever  take  a  contract  to  act  as  mechanic 
for  a  man  in  love.  That's  the  advice  I  thought 
I  ought  to  write  you  while  I'm  able,  for  it's 
dollars  to  doughnuts  that  if  we  go  on  as  we've 
started  I'll  be  receiving  my  weeping  friends  at 
the  morgue  next  week.  Say,  I'm  game,  but 
the  pace  for  the  last  three  days  has  me  guess 
ing  till  my  nerve  is  getting  frayed  at  the 
edges. 

We've  put  the  fear  of  death  on  the  innocent 
natives  of  New  York  State;  we've  been  off 
the  road  and  into  the  Montezuma  marshes,  and 
we've  come  within  two  inches  of  ramming  a 
fast  freight  and  we  on  high  speed  with  the 
clutch  locked  in.  I  don't  want  any  more  racing 
when  there's  a  girl  at  the  other  end.  A  man 
ain't  responsible  under  those  circumstances — 
but  I'll  tell  you  about  it. 

Terry,  I'm  sorry  you  missed  our  start  from 
.Times  Square  the  other  day.  It  was  as  good 

34 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

as  the  theater  to  see  the  Count  of  Monte 
Cristo  choo-choo  up  in  his  red  fire-wagon.  He 
was  got  up  regardless,  and,  Terry  (it  causes 
me  bitter  tears  to  write  it),  his  car  is  a  bird! 
Looks  as  if  it  would  sail  off  and  leave  us  a 
vanishing  speck  on  the  horizon.  It's  got  speed 
and  style,  and  if  it  carries  much  equipment 
it  is  stowed  away  so  you'd  hardly  notice  it. 
While  we — well,  you  saw  our  outfit  at  the 
garage,  business-like  but  not  elegant.  I  took 
the  rival  outfit  all  in — four  cylinders,  tremen 
dous  big  gas  tank,  I-beam  front  axle  with  that 
little  foreign  curve  that  makes  people  think  it 
can  go,  and  the  whole  blooming  outfit  finished 
up  in  that  indescribable  red  that  only  the  for 
eign  painters  know  how  to  get.  I  tell  you, 
it  struck  me  that  we  were  up  against  a  pretty 
stiff  proposition  when  I  sighted  that  car;  but 
when  I  got  the  chance  I  cocked  my  ears  and 
listened,  and — say,  you  know  the  throb  of  a 
well-timed  motor?  Well,  this  one  is  off  some 
where.  It  didn't  do  any  missing,  but  some 
of  the  explosions  came  too  near  together  and 
others  had  a  habit  of  lingering.  I  saw  that 
the  Boss  heard  it,  too,  and  I  said,  "  Connect 
ing-rod  trouble  ahead."  He  nodded;  and 
couldn't  help  looking  a  little  more  cheerful. 
Sure  enough — but  I  haven't  got  to  that  yet. 

35 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

It  didn't  take  us  long  after  we  got  outside 
of  town  to  find  out  that  the  Superba  could  beat 
us  on  good  roads,  and  after  a  couple  of  miles 
we  dropped  back  to  second  place,  well  out  of 
the  dust,  for  the  agreement  was  there  should 
be  no  racing  the  first  day  and  each  crew  was 
to  spend  the  night  at  Albany. 

At  Poughkeepsie,  where  we  had  a  good 
dinner,  there  were  the  usual  willing  ones  to 
tell  us  how  Mr.  Italy  had  gone  on  through 
town  like  a  scared  deer  a  whole  hour  before 
we  got  in.  I  saw  the  Boss  get  a  troubled  look 
and  I  knew  he  was  thinking  that  that  Dago 
wouldn't  stick  to  his  agreement  about  Albany. 
I  didn't  think  he  would  either,  so  I  hung  on 
and  said  nothing  when  the  Boss  began  taking 
corners  at  a  speed  that  I  thought  would  pull 
our  tires  off  at  every  turn.  I  don't  mind 
speed,  but  honest,  I  didn't  think  I'd  be  alive  as 
far  as  Albany,  and  I  wanted  to  see  the  capitol 
before  I  passed  in  my  checks.  We  had  our  auto- 
meter  showing  fifty  an  hour,  and  that's  going 
some  for  a  two-cylinder,  twenty-four  horse. 
The  Boss  kept  his  foot  down  hard  on  the 
throttle  until  I  began  to  think  I'd  signed  as 
an  airship  sailor,  when  we  swung  around  a 
corner  and  saw  something  that  looked  good 
to  us.  Vannuccini's  engine  had  begun  to 

36 


and  his  mechanic  was  under  the  car  wiring 
everything  anew. 

Say,  it  was  joyful  passing  that  outfit!  I  was 
driving  and  I  made  up  my  mind  if  the  Boss 
wanted  me  to  stop  so  he  could  oif  er  the  cour 
tesies  of  the  road  I'd  be  struck  deaf  and 
whizz  right  along.  But  he  didn't.  I  guess 
he  thought  of  the  date  he  had  in  Batavia,  for 
he  intimated  I  could  shove  in  my  high  speed; 
and  we  reached  Albany  at  5 :30. 

The  agreement  was  that  we  were  to  stay 
there  all  night,  and  of  course,  the  Boss,  being 
on  the  level,  prepared  to  stick  to  it.  He  left 
a  call  for  five  next  morning,  but  that  didn't 
satisfy  me.  The  Italian  had  arrived  an  hour 
after  we  got  in.  I  was  going  up  to  bed  when 
I  saw  him  talking  like  a  brother  to  the  night 
clerk.  I  don't  know  why,  but  I  didn't  like  the 
look  of  his  back.  I  picked  out  a  bell-hop  who 
looked  awake  and  I  took  him  aside  for  a  little 
heart-to-heart  talk.  The  result  was  that  the 
kid  rapped  on  my  door  at  two  in  the  morning 
and  told  me  that  Vannuccini  had  settled  his 
bill  and  left. 

Well,  I  had  the  Boss  out  as  if  the  place  was 
on  fire,  and  we  only  struck  the  high  places  on 
the  way  to  the  garage.  We  were  out  on  the 
Utica  pike  so  soon  after  Italy  that  we  could 

37 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

see  the  glimmer  of  his  searchlight  not  more 
than  a  mile  ahead.  Terry,  my  boy,  for  two 
hours  it  was  the  wildest  thing  in  the  line  of 
a  night  ride  I  ever  saw,  and  you  know  I'm 
used  to  going  some !  It  was  that  thick  kind  of 
blackness  that  comes  just  before  daylight 
sometimes;  and  through  it,  all  the  telephone 
poles  in  existence  seemed  to  be  rushing  at  us. 
You  know,  after  a  man  has  strained  his  eyes 
watching  a  dark  road  for  a  long  time,  all  kinds 
of  queer  things  seem  to  be  coming  at  him.  I 
can  tell  you  I  wasn't  objecting  any  when  day 
light  came.  We  didn't  stop  to  eat  till  we 
reached  Utica;  and  we  pulled  into  Syracuse 
only  five  minutes  behind  the  red  car. 

At  five  next  morning  we  were  off  again. 
I  could  see  that  it  was  reach  Batavia  first  or 
die  trying,  with  the  Boss.  Vannuccini  took 
the  safer  route  into  Rochester  via  Auburn  and 
Canandaigua,  but  the  Boss  picked  the  short 
cut  through  the  Montezuma  marshes.  And 
that's  where  we  skidded  in  among  the  frogs. 
We'd  been  delayed  fifteen  minutes  tinkering 
with  a  coil  and  the  Boss  was  wild.  He  began 
to  take  his  corners  too  fast,  and  when  we 
reached  the  big  S  in  the  road  over  went  the 
rear  wheels  into  the  mud  and  cat-tails  of  the 
swamp.  We  tried  to  get  her  out  under  power, 

38 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

but  the  rear  wheels  just  spun  around  and  threw 
mud  and  water  all  over  us.  Then  the  Boss 
dug  into  the  tonneau  and  brought  out  the  two 
cranks  for  the  windlass.  I  carried  the  end  of 
the  cable  across  the  road  and  made  it  fast  to 
a  telephone  pole  and  we  attached  ourselves  to 
the  windlass.  Of  course  it  was  hard  work, 
but  she  came  out  by  inches.  That  lost  us  an 
hour.  At  Pittsford  we  learned  that  the  Italian 
had  passed  through  town  at  a  furious  rate  over 
an  hour  before.  Well,  the  Boss's  foot  went 
down  crash  on  the  throttle  and  I  nearly  turned 
a  flip-flop  over  the  back  of  my  seat  as  our 
little  car  shot  ahead.  It  seemed  only  a  minute 
before  we  were  in  the  outskirts  of  Rochester. 
I  could  tell  by  the  Boss's  face  that  he  was 
going  to  run  the  risk  of  an  arrest  for  speed 
ing  inside  the  city  limits,  when  we  got  a  bit 
of  news  that  made  us  walk  through  the  city  as 
demure  as  a  girl  on  her  way  to  church.  I  had 
got  out  to  take  a  look  at  the  gasoline  tank, 
when  a  couple  of  kids  sitting  on  the  curb  sang 
out: 

"  Mister,  we  see  the  cop  arrest  a  man  just 
now  for  going  too  fast." 

"Is  that  so?"  said  the  Boss.     "What  did 
his  car  look  like?" 

"A  great  big  red  one!  " 
39 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

"Did  the  man  have  a  little  black  mustache 
and  a  tan  leather  coat?" 

'  Yes,  sir !  "  both  of  them  yelled,  and  I  guess 
if  the  Boss  hadn't  been  in  a  hurry  he'd  have 
given  those  two  kids  the  time  of  their  lives. 
He  handed  them  out  some  silver  and  last  we 
saw  of  them  they  were  looking  up  the  road  for 
more  luck  of  that  kind. 

Well,  we  didn't  know  whether  Vannuccini 
was  ahead  or  behind,  but  three-quarters  of  the 
way  to  Batavia  I  looked  back  at  a  turn  in  the 
road  and  saw  a  red  streak  in  the  landscape. 
He  was  coming,  on  high  speed,  too.  He 
couldn't  take  the  corners  as  we  could ;  but  when 
we  struck  the  level  stretch  into  Batavia  he  came 
up  and  went  past  us  like  an  Atlantic  type 
passenger  engine.  Say,  that  was  tough,  to 
have  to  slide  behind  and  see  the  satisfied  smile 
on  that  Italian  face  of  his!  And  there  was 
Batavia  in  plain  sight.  I  couldn't  bear  to  look 
at  the  Boss,  for  I  knew  just  how  he  was  feel 
ing.  I  was  just  thinking  of  relieving  myself 
by  a  little  language  when  I  saw  Vannuccini 
grab  the  emergency  and  slam  it  down  until 
his  rear  wheels  slid.  The  road  into  town 
crosses  the  railroad  yards,  and  the  Italian  was 
barely  in  time  with  his  brakes,  for  a  long 
freight  train  thundered  in,  fairly  shaving  the 

40 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

spring  ends  of  the  big  red  car  as  it  skidded 
and  slid  with  the  momentum  of  its  sixty-five 
mile  an  hour  rush. 

The  rest  happened  so  quick  that  I  didn't 
know  the  game  until  it  was  all  over.  Instead 
of  running  up  to  the  Superba  as  it  waited  for 
the  train  to  pass  the  Boss  stopped  the  Nero 
fully  a  hundred  yards  off,  and  for  the  life  of 
me  I  couldn't  see  why.  Our  engine  kept 
speeding  and  when  I  got  out  to  feel  the  radi 
ator  I  was  ordered  back  in  a  hurry.  When  there 
were  still  six  cars  of  the  freight  train  left  to 
pass  us  the  Boss  started  the  car,  and  by  the 
time  four  of  them  had  gone  past  we  were  on 
high  speed  and  going  some.  Do  you  see  his 
nifty  little  game?  Of  course  we  only  missed 
ramming  that  caboose  by  inches,  but  we  were 
going  at  fifty  miles  an  hour  when  we  passed 
the  red  car — and  Vannuccini  had  just  com 
menced  to  speed  up  his  motor.  By  the  time 
he  had  thrown  in  his  fourth  speed  we  were 
yards  and  yards  to  the  good  and  going  some! 

With  that  start  at  the  very  edge  of  the  town 
we  were  able  to  romp  right  in  first — though  I 
must  confess,  only  about  three  car  lengths 
ahead  of  our  glittering  rival.  But  that  was 
enough.  Terry,  I'm  giving  it  to  you  straight 
when  I  say  that  the  Boss  looked  as  if  he  was 

41 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

walking  right  up  the  golden  stairs  to  heaven 
when  he  got  out  of  the  car  and  took  off  his 
hat  to  the  Only  Girl  who  stood  on  the  veranda 
looking  a  regular  peach  in  a  fluffy  white  dress. 

As  I  drove  the  car  to  the  garage  I  saw  the 
Italian  hurrying  into  the  Richmond  House. 
And  now,  what  I'm  wondering  is  whether  this 
strenuous  life  is  to  be  kept  up  all  the  way  to 
Portland.  They've  an  agreement  to  wire  Miss 
Albright  from  certain  points  along  the  line — 
and  you  never  can  tell  what  a  man  in  love  will 
do.  He'll  break  his  neck  trying  to  make  an 
impression — and  that's  why  I'm  writing  you 
while  I'm  still  able. 

I  must  turn  in ;  we're  off  at  four  to-morrow 
morning. 

Yours, 
SID. 


CHAPTER  V 

TEN  days  after  her  dinner  with  Fleming 
at  Batavia,  Betty  Albright  found  her 
self  the  victim  of  a  clipping  bureau. 
When  a  full  realization  of  the  situation 
came  to  her  she  was  first  astounded  and  then 
angry.  She  read  the  mass  of  newspaper  clip 
pings  that  began  to  pour  in  upon  her  with  a 
feeling  of  helpless  annoyance.  There  seemed 
to  be  no  way  to  stop  them;  and  worst  of  all, 
she  could  not  help  but  read!  They  were  fas 
cinating,  absurd,  undignified — and  the  more 
interested  she  grew  the  angrier  she  became. 
She  told  herself  that  Jerry  Fleming  had 
cheapened  himself  and  the  race  by  bringing 
into  the  affair  an  element  of  commercialism 
totally  unexpected  and  unbargained  for.  For 
Jerry,  it  developed  from  the  newspaper  clip 
pings,  was  an  extremely  modern  knight.  He 
was  not  content  to  enter  the  lists  with  her  col 
ors  pinned  to  his  sleeve  and  pure  chivalry  as 
his  end  and  aim — not  he!  While  he  drove  for 
the  love  of  his  lady,  Jerry,  the  astute,  was 
perseveringly  advertising  his  car  and  his  fac 
tory. 

43 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

That  was  what  offended  Betty.  No  woman 
likes  to  acknowledge  that  a  man  can  with  per 
fect  facility  serve  the  god  of  love  and  the  god 
of  business  at  the  same  time.  And  because 
Betty  would  not  own  up  to  a  personal  pique, 
she  justified  her  annoyance  on  the  ground  that 
any  personal  advertising  was  against  the  eti 
quette  of  the  contest.  With  very  bright  eyes 
and  an  expression  that  boded  no  good  to  the 
cause  of  Mr.  Jerry  Fleming  she  laid  the  matter 
before  her  father. 

"  What  do  you  think,  Dad,"  she  said,  walk 
ing  into  her  father's  den  one  evening  before 
dinner,  "  Jerry  isn't  playing  fair.  He's  work 
ing  some  kind  of  an  advertising  scheme  all 
along  the  route.  I  think  it's  quite  common 
of  him!  I- 

"Easy,  Betty,"  her  father  interrupted. 
"What's  this  Fleming's  doing  —  exactly, 
now? " 

"Well,  look  at  these! "  Betty  cried,  holding 
out  a  handful  of  envelopes.  "  I'm  being  sim 
ply  snowed  under,  by  a  horrid  clipping  bureau. 
And  they're  all  Jerry,  Jerry,  Jerry — and  his 
wonderful  car." 

"How  does  it  happen  they're  sent  to  you, 
Bet?" 

Betty     sat     down     opposite     her     father, 

44 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

wrinkled  her  brows  thoughtfully,  and  said: 
"Why,  I  don't  know — unless — Dad,  do  you 
suppose  Jerry !  " 

Her  father's  eyes  twinkled.  "Yes,"  he 
said,  "I  suppose  Jerry!  That's  part  of  his 
advertising  scheme.  Out  of  sight  out  of 
mind  won't  do  for  Fleming.  He's  evidently 
notified  some  bureau  to  send  all  news  items 
concerning  himself  to  you — and  you've  got  to 
grin  and  hear  it,  Betty,  for  there's  no  stop 
ping  a  clipping  bureau  when  it  once  gets  to 
work.  Don't  open  the  letters  if  they  bother 
you." 

"  Oh,  it  isn't  that!"  she  exclaimed.  "  What 
annoys  me  is  that  I  don't  think  it  quite  nice 
of  Jerry  to  make  the  race  a  sort  of  circus  pro 
cession  across  the  continent.  It  wasn't  in  the 
agreement;  it  wasn't  the — the  object  of  the 
contest." 

She  colored  charmingly  as  she  reflected  on 
that  moment  of  innocent  vanity  when  she  had 
supposed  the  object  of  the  race  to  be  herself. 
But  her  father  was  blind  to  anything  so  deli 
cate  as  a  girl's  wounded  pride.  He  was  think 
ing  of  the  letter  of  the  law. 

"He's  got  a  perfect  right  to  use  the  race 
for  advertising  purposes  if  he  sees  fit,  Betty. 
The  advertising  part  of  it,"  he  added  with  a 

45 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

grim  smile,  "was  one  side  we  didn't  count  on 
— »Vannuccini  and  I.  It  isn't  too  late  yet; 
.  .  .  but  let's  see  how  Fleming's  doing  the 
trick." 

He  held  out  his  hand  for  the  batch  of  clip 
pings  Betty  held.  They  came  from  all  sorts 
of  sources,  the  automobile  journal,  the  big 
daily,  and  the  rural  weekly.  They  formed  an 
interesting  sidelight  on  the  character  of  the 
man  whose  doings  they  chronicled.  From  them 
one  gained  an  impression  of  a  picturesque  re 
sourcefulness,  a  daring  not  hampered  by  a  too 
modest  self -estimate,  and  perseverance  little 
short  of  genius. 

From  Buffalo  to  Chicago  Jerry  Fleming's 
trail  was  marked  by  the  newspaper  para 
graphs.  They  varied  from  a  two-inch  notice 
to  a  "feature"  in  the  Sunday  supplement; 
they  were  enriched  by  pictures — Fleming  in, 
beside  and  under  his  car;  Fleming,  smiling, 
as  he  shook  hands  with  the  mayor  of  Elyria; 
Fleming  giving  the  postmistress  of  Yorkville, 
111.,  a  ride  round  the  public  square;  Flem 
ing  the  intrepid  motorist  being  met  by  the 
Automobile  Club  of  Cleveland,  Toledo  and 
Elkhart. 

And  the  car!  The  car  performing  valiantly 
in  Illinois  mud;  the  car  in  sunshine  and  rain; 
the  car  standing  on  its  hind  legs  and  charging 
spiritedly  uphill ;  the  car  wreathed  with  laurels 

46 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

and  crowned  with  victory.  Jerry  Fleming's 
incomparable  car,  than  which  none  better  could 
be  met  with  from  New  York  to  Portland! 

Betty  Albright's  father  read  and  read — and 
then  he  laughed  aloud. 

"By  George,  Betty!"  he  exclaimed,  "the 
beggar's  playing  the  game.  Why,  see  here, 
daughter,  there's  ten  thousand  dollars'  worth 
of  advertising  in  those  clippings.  Do  you  no 
tice  the  way  he's  managed  to  work  in  his  Nero 
in  every  notice  ?  Every  man,  woman  and  child 
who  reads  those  papers  has  read  a  clever  bit 
of  special  pleading  for  Fleming's  car — and 
they'll  remember  it,  too.  I  never  thought  I 
could  learn  anything  from  Jerry  Fleming." 

Betty  looked  highly  disdainful.  "  Father ! " 
she  said,  "  you  wouldn't  stoop  to  such  methods 
to  advertise  the  Superba,  would  you?" 

The  old  man's  eyes  twinkled.  "  Sure!"  he 
said,  promptly.  "  Why  not?  Read  this  one 
from  Elyria,  Ohio," 

"  *  Dust-covered,  burnt  like  an  Indian,  but 
broadly  smiling,  the  genial  Jerry  Fleming  ar 
rived  in  Elyria  yesterday  in  his  staunch  little 
Nero  en  route  for  Portland,  Oregon.  With 
his  mechanic,  Fleming  has  started  on  a  4,000- 
mile  race  across  the  continent.  WTith  special 
sand- tires  he  will  cross  the  desert;  by  the  aid 
of  a  windlass  rigged  in  the  body  of  his  car  he 
will  climb  the  Rockies.  In  his  specially  de- 

47 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

signed  Nero  he  will  demonstrate  what  can  be 
conquered  in  the  way  of  quicksands,  snow 
storms,  and  unbridged  rivers  by  a  fine  car  in 
the  hands  of  a  fearless  driver." 

Mr.  Albright  laid  down  the  clipping  and 
chuckled.  "  Isn't  that  a  neat  little  puff,  daugh 
ter?"  he  laughed.  "Worth  a  fifty-dollar  ad 
in  the  Elyria  Standard.  And  see  this  one — 
all  about  how  the  intrepid  Fleming  in  his  never- 
to-be-beaten  car  was  met  by  the  Auto  Club  of 
South  Bend,  amidst  waving  flags  and  tooting 
horns !  Eh — what  do  you  think  of  that,  Betty? 
Clever,  isn't  it?" 

"I  call  it  vulgar!"  said  Betty. 

Her  father  smiled  grimly.  "  I  call  it  good 
business,"  he  returned.  "I  didn't  know  the 
young  beggar  had  it  in  him.  But  every  local 
puff  he  gets  means  time.  With  all  this  press 
business,  he  must  be  losing  ground  fast.  How 
much  ahead  was  Vannuccini  when  he  wired 
last?" 

Betty  took  from  the  pile  of  clippings  some 
yellow  envelopes.  "At  Cleveland,"  she  read, 
"Mr.  Vannuccini  sent  in  his  wire  four  hours 
ahead  of  Jerry;  and  at  Chicago  Jerry  seemed 
to  be  six  hours  behind." 

"But  the  motorists  fell  over  themselves  to 
meet  him  in  Chicago,  and  he  got  half  a  column 
in  the  Inter  Ocean!"  commented  her  father. 

48 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

"  While  Vannuccini  in  my  $3,000  Superba  ap 
pears  to  have  gone  through  after  dark.  Not 
a  line  in  the  papers — not  a  cent's  worth  of 
publicity!" 

"Mr.  Vannuccini,"  interrupted  Betty  with 
dignity,  "  is  racing  like  a  gentleman  and  a 
sportsman — not  as  if  he  was  the  advance  agent 
for  a  circus! " 

Her  father  laughed  and  then  drew  his  brows 
together.  "  By  George !  the  chance  he's  miss 
ing  !  Why,  according  to  those  clippings  Flem 
ing  hasn't  overlooked  an  opportunity  for  pub 
licity  on  the  route.  He's  getting  hundreds  of 
dollars'  worth  of  free  advertising  where  we're 
not  getting  one." 

Betty's  head  went  up.  "  I  didn't  know  that 
was  the  purpose  of  the  race " 

"Why  not?  Why  not?"  her  father  re 
torted  irritably.  "What  other  object  would 
there  be?  What " 

But  Betty  had  retreated  to  the  door, 
offended  and  beginning  to  get  a  rosy  color. 
But  before  she  reached  it,  Nora  appeared  with 
the  last  mail.  On  the  tray  Betty  recognized 
the  envelope  of  the  clipping  bureau.  She  tore 
it  open  with  an  impatient  hand. 

"Oh!  "  she  exclaimed,  "Jerry  is  impossible! 
Listen  to  this: 

"Fremont,  Nebraska,  Mercury:  'With  a 
49 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

Billy  Primrose  grin  adorning  his  mud-bespat 
tered  countenance,  Jerry  Fleming  in  his  fa 
mous  race  across  the  continent  arrived  in  town 
this  afternoon.  He  took  the  schoolma'am  and 
half  the  school  for  a  ride  'round  town  in  his 
famous  Nero  Mountaineer;  called  on  the 
mayor  and  dropped  in  for  a  chat  with  the 
editor.  Mr.  Fleming  has  met  with  samples  of 
Iowa  "  gumbo  "  mud  in  the  last  three  days,  but 
he  says  that  not  even  this  black  mud  can  stall 
his  car,  and  we're  inclined  to  believe  it  can't 
with  such  a  hustler  as  Fleming  at  the  wheel. 
Call  again,  Jerry,  and  we'll  give  you  the  free 
dom  of  the  town  '! " 

Betty  made  a  sound  of  deep  displeasure; 
but  her  father  put  his  head  back  and  laughed. 

"  He  ought  to  be  in  politics,"  he  declared. 

"He  will  lose  the  race,"  she  said. 

"  Mebbe,  mebbe ;  but  he's  going  to  get  a  lot 
out  of  it,  one  way.  All  that  free  adver " 

"Business! "  cried  Betty  as  she  ran  from  the 
room;  "always  business!" 

Her  father  pushed  a  perplexed  hand 
through  his  hair.  "  Why,  sure,  why  not, 
Betty? " 

But  Betty  was  rapidly  climbing  the  stairs. 
In  her  room  she  crumpled  the  offensive  clip 
pings  and  threw  them  into  the  waste-paper 
basket.  Then  she  picked  them  all  out  and 

50 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

smoothed  them  flat.  She  read  the  item  from 
the  Fremont  Mercury  again. 

"  I  can't  imagine  Mr.  Vannuccini  making 
himself  so — so  ordinary!"  she  reflected. 

But  she  did  not  put  the  clippings  back  into 
ihe  waste  basket. 


51 


CHAPTER   VI 

TWENTY  miles  from  Omaha  with  its 
radiator  pointed  west  Jerry  Fleming's 
blue  car  was  eating  up  the  Nebraska 
section  lines.  Only  fifty  miles  lay  be 
tween  him  and  the  Iowa  border;  but  already  a 
subtle  change  had  crept  into  the  feeling  of 
things.  They  were  on  the  threshold  of  the 
West.  Distance  was  reckoned,  not  by  miles, 
but  by  section  lines;  the  black  prairie  soil  of 
the  corn  belt  was  giving  way  to  arid  acres;  a 
hundred  miles  and  the  prairie  dog  town  would 
take  the  place  of  the  snug  villages  they  were 
flying  through. 

It  was  five  in  the  morning.  In  Fleming's 
ears  the  sweet  morning  air  sang  with  an  in 
spiriting  note.  For  the  first  time  since  the  be 
ginning  of  the  journey  he  was  able  to  throw 
off  the  strain  of  anxious  effort  and  feel  some 
thing  of  the  wonder  of  this  vast  country 
through  which  he  was  driving  his  car.  The 
wind  seemed  to  rush  at  them  from  illimitable 
space;  over  great  levels  the  road  stretched  till 
it  vanished  before  them;  like  a  calm  sea  was 
the  prairie  as  the  wind  swept  over  it.  Later 
the  sun  would  beat  down  upon  them  from  a 

52 


THE    CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

relentless  blaze  of  deep  blue  heaven;  but  now 
the  whole  world  seemed  waiting  in  a  kind  of 
cool  stillness. 

Fleming  felt  his  spirits  rising.  The  night 
before  in  Omaha  he  had  gone  to  bed  at  his 
hotel,  half  dead  with  weariness;  and  for  the 
first  time  he  had  faced  the  possibility  of  defeat. 
For  Vannuccini  was  somewhere  eight  hours 
ahead  of  him.  This  Fleming  had  learned  at 
the  first  telegraph  station  inside  the  city  limits 
of  Omaha  when  he  sent  in  his  telegram  to 
Betty.  The  telegraph  operator  told  him  an 
Italian  in  a  big  red  car  had  sent  a  wire  from 
his  station  at  ten  that  morning;  and,  "when 
I  saw  him  last,"  he  added,  "he  was  hitting  the 
macadam  west  like  a  scared  jackrabbit." 

From  Buffalo  to  Chicago  and  from  Chicago 
to  Omaha  the  run  had  been  uneventful,  as  flat 
and  monotonous  as  the  level  miles  their  auto- 
meter  recorded.  Good  roads  and  indifferent 
roads  alike  had  unwound  before  them  without 
even  the  dubious  interest  of  an  accident.  But 
half  way  across  the  level  stretches  of  Illinois 
there  came  a  change  in  the  shape  of  a  terrific 
rainstorm.  By  a  lucky  margin  Vannuccini 
missed  this  storm  which  turned  the  Illinois 
loam  into  a  welter  of  black  mud,  but  Fleming 
ran  squarely  into  it  and  was  caught  like  a  fly 
in  a  web. 

53 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

For  three  days  they  labored  through  a  night 
mare  of  the  famous  "  gumbo  "  mud,  until  the 
car  and  its  occupants  were  unrecognizable  and 
each  wheel  resembled  a  huge  mud  pie.  Work 
ing  knee  deep  in  mud  and  water  Fleming  and 
Sid  had  to  resort  again  and  again  to  the  cable 
and  windlass ;  the  water  in  the  radiator  boiled, 
and  through  the  lowlands  along  the  Rock  River 
the  water  flowed  into  the  car  itself.  Twice 
they  found  a  bridge  down,  and  when  they 
reached  the  Skunk  River  bottoms  in  Iowa  the 
climax  of  their  difficulties  was  reached — they 
were  forced  to  try  conclusions  with  a  mud-hole 
that  for  size  and  depth  and  general  nastiness, 
as  Sid  put  it,  beat  every  other  mud-hole  in  the 
world. 

But  here  they  met  a  friend.  He  was  a  lean, 
wiry  fellow  who  said  he  was  a  doctor.  He  was 
on  his  way  to  a  country  patient  in  a  gasoline 
runabout  of  an  ancient  pattern.  As  he  came 
plowing  sturdily  through  the  mud  toward 
them,  a  delightful  grin  began  to  illuminate  his 
countenance;  in  an  instant  he  was  out  of  his 
machine  and  reaching  out  to  grasp  their  hands. 

"Say!"  he  cried,  "I'm  tickled  to  death  to 
meet  you  fellows.  I've  read  all  about  you  in 
the  papers.  I'm  the  only  man  in  our  town 
that's  got  a  car,  and  I  sez  to  myself  I'd  be 

54 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

durned  if  I  wouldn't  come  out  and  meet  you  if 
I  knew  when  you'd  be  along.  Now,  what  can 
I  do  for  you?" 

Fleming  laughed  wearily.  "  Lend  me  a  bal 
loon  to  get  out  of  this  swamp,"  he  answered. 

The  little  doctor  viewed  their  plight  in  a 
matter-of-fact  way ;  long  residence  in  the  Mid 
dle  West  had  made  him  philosophical  on  the 
subject  of  roads.  "Got  plenty  of  rope  and  a 
block  and  tackle?  "  he  asked.  They  had.  The 
Mountaineer  plunged  into  the  mud  until  stuck 
fast  and  then  the  rope  was  run  out,  attached 
to  the  front  spring  hanger  and  the  other  end 
made  fast  to  the  doctor's  runabout,  which  still 
stood  on  dry  land.  Thus,  with  everybody  push 
ing  and  the  free  car  towing,  they  managed  to 
work  their  way  across  a  swamp  considered  im 
passable  in  wet  weather.  In  the  meantime  the 
carburetor  had  shipped  some  water  and  the  bat 
tery  had  short-circuited.  But  these  were  minor 
evils  to  the  lowan.  He  cheerfully  fell  to  work 
and  in  the  midst  of  their  labors  he  imparted  a 
bit  of  information  that  interested  Fleming  and 
Sid  immensely.  It  was  to  the  effect  that  he 
had  been  in  an  Altoona  garage  when  a  big  red 
car  was  brought  in  for  an  overhauling  early 
that  morning.  From  his  description  Fleming 
knew  at  once  it  was  the  Superba. 

55 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

"I  was  considerably  interested  in  that  big 
car,"  said  the  doctor,  "  and  of  course  I  was 
hanging  around  most  of  the  time  it  was  in  the 
garage.  And,  say,  it  struck  me  as  a  kind  of 
useless  risk  with  a  speedy  car  like  that,  to  put 
picric  acid  in  its  gasoline  tank " 

"Picric  acid!  "  they  echoed;  and  then  looked 
at  each  other  with  a  grin  of  understanding. 
The  weeping  skies  seemed  to  lighten ;  the  mud 
became  less  formidable.  If  Vannuccini  was 
resorting  to  carbazotic,  or  picric  acid,  a  most 
dangerous  stimulant,  to  heighten  his  speed,  it 
meant  that  he  had  lost  something  of  his  self- 
confidence  in  the  face  of  the  West. 

"  Say,  the  country  has  given  him  a  jolt," 
said  Sid,  in  a  more  cheerful  tone  than  Fleming 
had  heard  him  use  in  many  miles.  "I  hope 
he  cracks  a  cylinder  with  that  acid,"  he  added 
amiably. 

The  next  news  they  had  of  their  rival  came 
to  them  in  an  equally  unexpected  manner,  and 
produced  in  Fleming  a  curious  mingling  of 
emotions.  Across  the  great  level  stretches  of 
Nebraska  the  Platte  River,  with  its  many  long 
bridges,  unrolls  itself  like  a  lazy  snake.  In 
the  spring  it  swallows  its  low  banks  and  forms 
unexpected  lakes,  but  during  the  dry  season 
it  flows  sluggishly  within  bounds,  respecting 

56 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

the  rights  of  the  road  that  travels  along  beside 
it.  Once  he  had  run  out  of  the  path  of  the 
storm  Fleming  found  this  road  a  fairly  good 
highway,  except  for  an  occasional  patch  of 
deep  alkali  dust.  Making  the  best  of  it,  they 
were  able  to  reach  Palmer,  a  hundred  miles 
or  so  west  of  Omaha,  that  evening. 

Gathered  in  front  of  the  one  hotel  of  Pal 
mer,  with  their  hats  off  to  the  evening  coolness, 
was  a  large  percentage  of  the  male  population 
and  a  sprinkling  of  farmers,  the  sheriff  from 
Prairie  Creek,  a  traveling  salesman  and  a 
grizzled  ranchman  from  the  North  country. 
The  traveling  man  was  true  to  his  type  and 
did  most  of  the  talking,  but  the  cattleman  oc 
casionally  threw  in  a  remark.  They  in  com 
pany  with  everyone  else  in  town  had  looked 
over  the  car  with  intense  interest  and  had  prof 
fered  advice  freely  to  Fleming.  They  had 
then  tilted  their  chairs  against  the  wooden 
front  of  the  hotel  and  prepared  to  utter  the 
final  word  on  automobiling  in  general.  Flem 
ing,  who  had  learned  that  a  friendly  interest 
in  the  people  he  met  generally  resulted  in  valu 
able  bits  of  information,  smoked  his  pipe  with 
them  and  listened.  It  appeared  that  the  seller 
of  merchandise  and  the  old  ranchman  had 
made  each  other's  acquaintance  in  Kearney  the 

57 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

night  before.  The  occasion  had  been  a  poker 
game  in  "  Solomon's  Place,"  and  the  memories 
of  the  evening  continued  to  prompt  them  to 
reminiscence. 

"I've  sure  seen  all  kinds  of  players  in 
Solomon's  Place,"  remarked  the  ranchman 
after  their  own  game  had  been  threshed  out, 
"but  for  nerve  and  endurance  that  black-haired 
fellow  was  one  of  the  stars.  Why,  he " 

"  That's  so,"  interrupted  the  traveling  man. 
"  Maybe  you  know  him?  "  he  turned  to  Flem 
ing.  "  Come  into  town  yesterday  morning  in 
a  big  red  automobile.  I  heard  he  was  one  of 
those  fellows  that  are  racing  across  to  'Frisco; 
I  didn't  have  the  chance  to  ask  him,  or  I  would. 
But  I  seen  him  in  Solomon's  Place " 

"When?"  came  from  both  Fleming  and 
Sid. 

"Last  night,  when  Peters  and  I  were  hav 
ing  that  little  game  we've  talked  about.  He'd 
been  there  since  ten  that  morning,  Sol  said, 
and  it  was  midnight  when  Peters  and  I  pulled 
out.  He  was  playing  then,  as  cool  as  a  cucum 
ber,  and  I  heard  next  morning  he  played  till 
three." 

"  He  sure  was  a  practiced  hand!  "  sighed  the 
old  ranchman,  thinking  of  his  own  bad  luck  in 
Solomon's  Place. 

58 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

Fleming  looked  up  keenly.  "  What  makes 
you  think  so?  "  he  said. 

"My  son,  I've  played  in  'most  every  gam 
bling  place  from  Portland  to  Chicago  and  I've 
seen  all  kinds  of  players,  them  that  was  so 
green  they  hurt  your  eyes,  and  them  that  had 
been  playing  the  game  since  they  were  born. 
And  if  ever  I  seen  a  gambler  born  and  bred 
that  black-haired  feller  last  night  was  one. 
Men  that  play  like  I  do  just  for  fun  don't 
keep  it  up  seventeen  hours  at  a  stretch,  and 
they  don't  have  the  same  kind  of  a  look,  some 
way." 

Fleming  turned  to  the  drummer.  "  Can  you 
describe  him?" 

"  Sure;  small  black  mustache,  black  hair  and 
eyes,  looked  like  a  foreigner ;  and  he  had  a  ring 
with  a  big  green  stone  on  his  little  finger. 
Friend  of  yours? " 

"  Thanks,"  said  Fleming,  and  that  was  all. 
He  strolled  off  to  where  the  car  had  been  run 
into  the  hotel  barn,  and  Sid  followed.  What 
he  had  learned  had  only  confirmed  a  suspicion 
that  had  lain  at  the  bottom  of  his  mind  for 
months.  In  New  York  there  had  been  vague 
rumors  concerning  Vannuccini  which  fitted  in 
perfectly  with  the  title  of  gambler  just  be 
stowed  upon  him  by  the  Westerner.  These 

59 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

rumors  had  added  to  his  uneasiness  on  Betty's 
account ;  but  even  now,  with  his  additional  evi 
dence,  he  felt  the  impossibility  of  turning  tale 
bearer  against  a  rival.  There  was  only  one 
thing  to  do — pull  first  into  Portland.  He 
turned  to  find  Sid  looking  at  him  with  an 
eagerly  questioning  eye. 

"  Say,  I've  overhauled  the  car;  she's  all 
ready.  If  we  make  a  night  run  of  it  maybe 
we  can  overtake  him.  What  do  you  say? " 

It  was  a  temptation,  but  Fleming  shook  his 
head.  He  had  learned  that  nothing  was  to  be 
gained  by  going  without  sleep. 

"  Have  the  car  around  at  four  in  the  morn 
ing,"  he  said.  "I  think  we'll  catch  up  with 
him  at  Cheyenne." 

As  he  watched  the  road  ahead  of  him  in  the 
early  light  of  next  morning  Fleming's  mind 
traveled  over  the  usual  problem :  where  was  the 
other  car  at  that  moment,  and  how  could  he  cut 
down  their  stops  so  as  to  make  up  what  they 
had  lost  in  the  Middle  West?  Fleming  felt  al 
most  a  prophetic  certainty  that  if  he  could 
enter  Wyoming  on  even  terms  he  could  hold 
his  own  against  even  the  high-powered  Su- 
perba. 

'  With  an  even  start  I  can  beat  him  in  the 
desert,  Sid.  We  ought  to  make  Kearney  some 

60 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

time  this  afternoon;  Julesburg  to-morrow 
afternoon  and " 

He  stopped  and  slowed  down  as  Johnston 
raised  a  warning  hand.  They  were  twenty 
miles  south  of  Palmer,  headed  toward  the 
Platte.  Before  them  a  small  creek  hastening 
down  to  the  river  had  worn  a  deep  bed  through 
the  alkali  soil;  the  wooden  bridge  over  this 
creek  was  perhaps  six  feet  from  the  water. 
As  usual,  Johnston  hopped  out  and  tried  the 
structure.  He  said  it  looked  a  little  dubious 
to  him ;  but  there  was  no  danger  notice  posted. 
They  started  to  crawl  across  the  bridge  on  low 
speed. 

Exactly  in  the  middle  of  it  there  came  a 
warning  groan  from  the  structure,  and  the 
next  instant  the  car  and  its  freight  went  crash 
ing  down  into  the  water. 

A  minute  later  two  battered  automobilists 
climbed  the  bank  and  cast  themselves  down  on 
the  ground.  How  they  had  escaped  being 
crushed  under  the  car  they  could  not  tell;  in 
its  drop  it  had  evidently  tilted  to  one  side  and 
pitched  them  out.  Sid  nursed  a  bruised  shoul 
der,  and  Fleming,  after  a  moment  or  two, 
clambered  down  to  the  water  again  and  re 
luctantly  examined  the  car.  His  sentiments  at 
that  time  were  too  bitter  to  be  voiced  in  words. 

61 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

It  was  the  worst  moment  he  had  known,  for  to 
all  outward  appearances  the  car,  his  great  hope, 
was  a  wreck.  But  overwhelmed  as  he  was,  he 
was  the  first  to  pull  himself  together. 

"  She's  got  to  be  righted  and  pulled  out  of 
here,"  he  said  tersely.  He  winced  from  his 
bruises  as  he  stood  up,  but  his  face  was  set.  He 
told  Sid  to  collect  that  part  of  their  outfit  that 
was  gracing  the  bottom  of  the  little  stream  and 
to  lighten  the  car.  He  himself  set  out  across 
the  prairie  in  the  direction  of  a  farm  they  had 
passed  a  mile  back. 

When  he  returned  he  rode  a  gaunt  gray 
mule,  while  a  greatly  curious  farmer  followed 
on  horseback.  The  Nebraskan's  only  comment 
on  the  accident  was  to  the  effect  that  they  had 
needed  a  new  bridge  a  long  time  and  now  they; 
would  get  it. 

It  took  an  hour  to  get  the  car  to  the  top  of 
the  bank ;  and  another  to  put  it  in  condition  to 
be  hauled  to  town.  The  fall  had  broken  both 
front  springs,  sprung  the  front  axle  badly,  and 
damaged  the  steering  gear  to  such  an  extent 
that  the  wheel  would  only  turn  in  one  direction. 
The  lamps  were  badly  dented,  one  mud  guard 
smashed,  the  radiator  badly  battered  and  the 
bonnet  caved  in.  Altogether  it  was  a  depress 
ing  sight.  Jerry's  face,  as  they  were  ignomini- 

62 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

ously  hauled  into  Grand  Island  late  that  after 
noon  by  the  horse  and  gray  mule,  was  a  study 
in  deep  dejection. 

Here  in  Hart's  garage  the  blue  car  stayed 
that  night  and  the  next  day  while  Fleming, 
Sid  and  the  entire  garage  force  worked  fever 
ishly  to  get  it  in  traveling  trim.  By  nine 
o'clock  the  second  evening  it  was  ready  to  go 
on,  not  much  the  worse  for  the  adventure.  A 
glorious  moon  was  just  above  the  horizon. 
Fleming  figured  on  reaching  Kearney,  forty 
miles  west,  before  daylight. 

Steering  clear  of  the  pitfalls  of  the  lower 
road,  he  kept  his  car  close  to  the  foot  of  the 
sand  hills  which  undulated  to  the  north  of 
them,  magically  white  in  the  radiance  of  the 
wonderful  Western  moonlight.  Now  and  then 
they  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  Platte,  shining 
between  its  banks.  At  midnight  they  were 
running  into  Kearney,  and  the  moonlight  still 
held;  it  lighted,  in  fact,  the  entire  street  and 
poured  into  the  windows  of  a  garage  they  were 
passing.  It  fell  upon  the  bright  red  paint  of 
a  big  automobile  standing  within  and  reflected 
back  its  shining  brass.  Johnston,  who  was 
driving,  brought  the  car  to  a  sudden  stop,  flung 
himself  from  his  seat  and  peered  in  at  the  win 
dow.  He  came  running  back  on  tiptoe,  as  if 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

afraid  the  red  car  would  hear  him  and  come 
out.  His  face  was  full  of  unrighteous  joy. 

"  It's  the  Superba,"  he  chuckled,  "  and 
they've  cracked  a  cylinder — good  for  that  pic 
ric  acid ! " 

He  climbed  in  and  put  his  hand  to  the  steer 
ing  wheel.  There  was  nothing  said,  but  the  two 
understood  each  other.  They  did  not  need  sleep 
now.  Two  minutes  later  they  were  flying 
through  the  last  half  hour  of  moonlight, 
straight  west.  And  for  the  first  time  in  thir 
teen  hundred  miles  the  red  car  was  behind 
them. 


CHAPTER   VII 

"TF'VE   got  it  figured   out  we  can  make 
Julesburg    to-morrow    afternoon    and 

M  Cheyenne  next  day,"  Jerry  was  saying, 
exultantly,  as  they  plunged  ahead  over  the  un 
dulating  prairie. 

"If  we  ain't  handed  out  another  bad  luck 
deal,"  Johnston  added,  and  at  that  moment  it 
happened.  They  had  left  the  road,  which  was 
deep  in  sand  and  alkali  dust,  and  were  running 
free  over  the  prairie,  keeping  the  river  in  sight 
as  a  guide.  What  appeared  to  be  a  smooth 
patch  of  hard  earth  had  invited  Johnston  to 
"let  her  out  a  notch."  The  next  instant  the 
front  wheels  sank  to  the  axles  writh  a  sudden 
ness  that  nearly  sent  them  flying  over  the  hood. 
Fleming  had  to  climb  out  before  he  could 
realize  what  had  happened.  Then  he  saw  that 
the  car  was  hopelessly  stalled  in  a  buffalo-wal 
low!  As  if  it  had  attempted  to  traverse  thin 
ice,  the  two-thousand-pound  car  had  broken 
through  the  crust  which  the  alkali  soil  forms 
over  these  old  wallows  all  through  Nebraska, 
and  in  two  minutes  it  had  settled  almost  to  the 
engine. 

65 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

Sid  climbed  down.  His  language  was  a 
striking  combination  of  East  Side  vituperation 
and  newly  acquired  Western  profanity.  Flem 
ing  lighted  his  pipe.  He  had  never  found  it 
any  relief  to  swear;  in  stressful  times  he  gen 
erally  became  doggedly  silent.  His  spirits, 
soaring  in  the  air  a  minute  before,  struck  bot 
tom  ;  but  his  first  thought  was  of  what  could  be 
done.  At  the  crucial  moment  the  moon  had 
dropped  below  the  horizon.  They  unfastened 
one  of  the  oil  lamps  and  decided  that  the  car 
had  sunk  as  far  as  it  was  going  to;  but  it  was 
too  dark  to  extricate  it  then.  There  was  noth 
ing  to  do  but  to  try  for  a  couple  of  hours' 
sleep. 

"Oh,  I  dunno!  this  ain't  so  bad;  if  I  had  a 
cinder  in  my  eye  I  couldn't  tell  it  from  a  sleep 
ing  car!"  said  Sid,  as  he  accommodated  him 
self  to  the  tonneau  seat. 

But  it  seemed  that  he  was  too  sanguine.  In 
twenty  minutes  they  were  both  looking  for 
more  coverings.  They  spoke  longingly  of  the 
army  blankets  they  were  to  take  on  at  Chey 
enne,  and  donned  their  leathers.  At  two  o'clock 
of  a  Nebraska  morning  on  the  lowlands  of  the 
Platte  the  air  is  decidedly  nipping.  Presently 
they  rose  again  and  put  on  sweaters  that  had 
been  serving  as  pillows,  and  a  third  time  they 

66 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

got  up  to  hunt  for  their  rubber  shirts.  The  last 
thing  Fleming  knew  Sid  was  wrapping  his 
feet  in  yards  and  yards  of  hemp  rope.  In  spite 
of  his  misery  Fleming  laughed.  He  reflected 
that  something  funny  could  be  extracted  from 
almost  any  situation.  He  looked  for  a  long 
minute  at  the  starlit  immensity  above  him — and 
the  next  thing  he  knew  Johnston  was  singing 
out,  "  Last  call  for  the  dining-car!  " 

A  line  of  rose  showed  above  the  horizon ;  the 
gray  dawn  would  shortly  give  way  to  the  sun, 
and  there  was  a  heavenly  smell  of  coffee  from 
the  pot  Sid  had  propped  over  the  blow-torch 
(for  there  is  no  wood  to  be  had  in  Nebraska)  ; 
and  hope  stirred  once  more  in  the  call  to  work. 

It  was  eleven  that  morning  before  they 
cleared  the  car  from  the  mire.  Anything 
stickier  than  the  mud  of  a  buffalo-wallow  an 
Easterner  cannot  imagine.  Before  anything 
could  be  done  with  the  cable  and  windlass  the 
running  gear  had  to  be  freed  somewhat  from 
the  mud.  Sid  began  to  shovel  light-heartedly; 
but  in  another  minute  he  was  standing  appalled 
at  the  mass  of  grayish  muck  that  stuck  to 
his  feet  and  refused  to  be  parted  from  his 
shovel. 

"  Say!"  he  complained,  "it's  like  trying  to 
shovel  a  ton  of  molasses  candy!  " 

67 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

In  the  meantime  they  had  the  added  chagrin 
of  seeing  the  red  car  flash  past  a  half  mile 
away  on  the  river  road. 

"Twenty  an  hour!"  commented  Sid  rue 
fully;  but  Fleming  shut  his  mouth  hard  and 
returned  to  the  problem  of  how  to  use  his  cable 
when  there  was  not  a  tree  in  the  State,  and 
the  nearest  telephone  pole  looked  like  a  needle 
in  the  distance.  He  got  around  this  difficulty 
eventually  by  the  process  that  Westerners  call 
"  planting  a  dead-man."  Digging  two  trenches, 
one  at  right  angles  with  the  other,  he  tied  the 
cable  to  the  spade  handle  and  buried  it  in  the 
horizontal  trench,  stamping  the  earth  down 
hard  over  it  and  allowing  the  cable  to  play  out 
through  the  shallower  second  trench.  Thus 
with  their  cable  hitched  to  the  earth  itself  and 
both  men  straining  at  the  windlass  handles  the 
mired  car  began  finally  to  move. 

There  is  to  some  natures  an  exhilaration  in 
the  conquering  of  difficulties.  Fleming  felt 
once  more  his  high  spirits  returning  as  he  gave 
the  last  twist  to  the  windlass.  If  resource  and 
determination  counted  for  anything  he  would 
start  even  with  Vannuccini  by  the  time  they 
faced  the  unknown  difficulties  of  Wyoming. 
In  the  two  last  trying  days  his  belief  in  himself 
and  in  his  car  had  grown.  With  the  motor  or 

68 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

gears  there  had  not  been  a  minute's  trouble 
since  they  left  New  York.  If  no  more  misad 
ventures  befell  them  it  seemed  reasonable  to 
believe  they  would  leave  Cheyenne  not  far  be 
hind  the  Superba. 

At  noon  they  filled  their  gasoline  tanks  at 
Lexington  for  the  one  hundred  and  seventy 
mile  run  into  Julesburg.  Here  they  found  the 
red  car  to  be  less  than  two  hours  ahead  of  them, 
and  the  news  revived  Sid  so  effectually  that  he 
narrowly  escaped  arrest  in  driving  out  of  Lex 
ington. 

All  that  afternoon  they  flew  through  vast 
tracks  of  unfenced  prairie  land;  prairie  chick 
ens  tempted  their  rifle,  while  quail,  wild  doves 
and  an  occasional  eagle  rose  with  a  whirr  of 
wings  from  their  path.  At  Lodge  Pole  they 
found  a  ranch  owner  forming  a  hunting  party 
to  track  a  band  of  gray  wolves  that  had  killed 
eighteen  head  of  cattle  the  night  before.  And 
beyond  North  Platte  they  ran  the  car  squarely- 
through  the  middle  of  a  huge  coil  of  rattle 
snakes  sunning  themselves  in  the  sandy  trail. 
It  was  a  lively  moment.  Snakes  of  assorted 
sizes  flew  in  all  directions,  one  large  rattler, 
with  his  buttons  playing  a  fearful  tune,  land 
ing  in  the  tonneau  of  the  car.  There  was  no 
stopping  to  dispute  the  right  of  way ;  Fleming 

69 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

and  Sid  jumped  wildly,  leaving  the  outraged 
rattler  in  full  possession.  With  their  six-shoot 
ers  they  dispatched  the  several  rattlers  in  sight 
and  then  sat  down  to  wait  for  their  car  to  be 
vacated.  It  was  some  time  before  the  big 
snake  slid  cautiously  to  the  ground,  and  when 
he  finally  landed  a  well-directed  shot  from 
Sid's  Colt's  automatic  put  an  end  to  what  had 
been  a  singularly  unpleasant  quarter  of  an 
hour.  Sid  wiped  his  brow  as  he  climbed  back 
into  his  seat. 

"  And  I  was  happy  and  safe  a  block  from 
Broadway!"  he  remarked  plaintively. 

Fleming  laughed.  "Why,  Sid,  Broadway 
will  be  dull  after  this!  Buck  up  now.  To 
morrow  we'll  be  in  Cheyenne — and  the  real  fun 
will  begin." 

From  Lodge  Pole  to  Cheyenne  their  route 
dipped  through  the  northeastern  corner  of 
Colorado,  into  the  prairie-dog  country,  the  land 
of  sage  brush  and  deceptive  distances.  That 
their  way  was  rising  to  meet  the  Rockies  was 
becoming  evident  by  the  wonderful  clearness 
of  the  air,  which  late  in  the  afternoon  played 
them  the  sort  of  a  trick  it  has  always  ready  for 
the  Easterner.  Fleming,  who  was  driving, 
noticed  that  the  engine  was  losing  power.  He 
threw  out  the  clutch  and  turned  off  the  switch, 

70 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

but  the  engine  still  continued  to  fire.  He  con 
cluded  there  was  something  wrong  with  the 
pump,  and  Johnston  climbed  down  to  investi 
gate. 

"  The  pump's  all  right,"  he  called  back,  "but 
there's  nothing  to  pump.  There  isn't  a  drop 
of  water  in  the  little  old  wagon!" 

They  found  a  leaking  radiator  pipe  which 
had  evidently  been  twisted  by  a  tough  patch  of 
sage  brush,  and  though  the  pipe  itself  could 
be  repaired  on  the  spot  with  a  few  drops  of 
solder,  the  serious  part  of  their  difficulty  struck 
them  when  they  found  that  they  had  emptied 
their  last  water  tank  ten  miles  back.  A  few 
hundred  miles  farther  east  they  had  run  in 
water  up  to  the  hubs;  and  now  when  they 
wanted  water  the  country  looked  as  thirsty  as 
a  neglected  rubber-plant.  The  only  promise 
held  out  to  them  was  where  a  tiny  light  had 
just  sprung  up  across  the  prairie,  apparently 
a  mile  or  so  away.  Johnston  took  the  pail  and 
started  off,  whistling.  Fleming  lighted  the  big 
Solar  searchlight  to  guide  him  back,  and  sat 
him  down  to  wait. 

The  darkness  became  complete;  in  all  that 
vast  expanse  of  starlit  level  only  the  one  little 
light  gave  a  promise  of  human  life.  He 
waited  two  hours,  and  then  suddenly  Johnston 

71 


stepped  out  of  the  darkness.  A  more  thor 
oughly  disgusted  face  Fleming  had  never 
seen — and  the  water  pail  was  empty. 

"  Say,"  he  cried,  "  do  you  see  a  light  out 
there,  or  don't  you?" 

Fleming  assured  him  he  did.  "  Well,"  Sid 
responded,  "you  can  put  it  down  it's  one  of 
those  spook  lights  you  read  about  in  books. 
Say — I  walked  four  miles  or  more  and  that 
light  never  got  any  nearer  than  it  is  now. 
Every  little  while  I'd  hear  a  snake  rustle  out 
of  the  way  and  I  got  to  that  state  where  a 
jack-rabbit  looked  like  a  wolf  to  me.  I  sez 
to  myself,  it's  back  to  the  car  for  mine,  and  I 
tell  you  the  rays  from  that  battered  old  Solar 
looked  good  to  me !  How  far  do  you  suppose 
that  glim  is,  anyway?" 

"  Haven't  an  idea,  now,"  said  Fleming,  and 
proposed  that  they  drive  toward  the  light  till 
the  engine  became  hot  again  and  then  stop  to 
let  it  cool.  Thus  they  made  their  way  labori 
ously  once  more  toward  the  elusive  light.  It 
jumped  out  upon  them  at  last  from  the  win 
dow  of  a  small  ranch  house — and  their  auto- 
meter  showed  that  they  had  traveled  ten  miles 
to  reach  it. 

"  Say,  don't  tell  them  I  started  out  to  walk 
it!"  begged  Sid;  and  Fleming  assured  him 

72 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

that  no  Westerner  would  need  that  tale  to  con 
vince  him  they  were  tenderfeet. 

Next  morning  in  Cheyenne  they  had  the 
good  luck  to  find  a  talkative  operator  in  the 
telegraph  office  when  they  stopped  to  wire 
New  York. 

"  He  sure  was  a  lordly  party,"  said  the 
operator.  "  He  says  to  me  he  wants  his  money 
and  wants  it  quick.  I  explained  to  him  it's 
the  rule  of  the  company  a  man  must  be  identi 
fied.  You  see,  a  party  in  New  York  had 
wired  him  money;  but  he  couldn't  produce 
anyone  in  Cheyenne  that  would  say  he  was 
Vermicelli ' ' 

"  Vannuccini,"  said  Fleming. 

"D'you  know  him?" 

"  Slightly.  I  am — sort  of  keeping  him 
company  across  to  Portland.  How  did  you 
settle  the  money  question?  " 

"  Well,  I  made  out  a  check  for  the  amount 
payable  to  Vannuccini  and  told  him  he  could 
take  his  chances  of  getting  it  cashed.  And  I 
directed  him  to  Heinze.  Don't  you  know 
Heinze's  place?  Biggest  gambling  palace  be 
tween  here  and  Portland.  Heinze  is  a  good 
fellow;  he'll  cash  anything  if  you  take  it  to 
his  place.  So  off  goes  the  Italian  gent  to  the 
Crystal  Palace.  What  time?  Oh,  about  eight 

73 


THE     CAR    AND    THE     LADY 

last  night.  No,  I  don't  know  where  he  is  now. 
He  wasn't  talking  much.  He  puffed  up  here 
in  his  big  buzz-wagon  and  the  boys  that  were 
waiting  for  number  nine  sort  of  crowded 
around — wanted  to  size  up  the  car,  you  know. 
But  the  Count  was  some  peevish;  wasn't  in 
viting  any  of  them  to  ride,  and  his  private 
thoughts  about  the  country — say,  what  did  he 
expect?  A  Turkish  bath  and  a  manicure  par 
lor  every  section  or  two?  He  seemed  to  be 
sour  because  there  ain't  any  buffets  or  cafe 
chantongs  between  here  and  Julesburg.  Say, 
if  he's  a  friend  of  yours  you'd  better  put  him 
wise  to  a  thing  or  two  before  he  gets  into  the 
Bitter  Creek  country!" 

Fleming  laughed.  "  I  don't  think  he's 
waiting  for  me  to  catch  up  with  advice.  I 
supposed  he  wired  New  York  last  night?" 

"  Sure ! "  said  the  operator.  "  It  was  the 
only  thing  that  seemed  to  give  him  any;  satis 
faction." 

Jerry  sighed;  and  wrote  on  a  yellow  blank: 

"  Dear  B.  The  tortoise  is  still  on  the  job. 
Not  so  far  behind  as  this  reads.  His  senti 
ments  just  the  same.  Won't  you  write?  Ter 
ribly  dangerous  country.  My  young  life  may] 
come  to  an  end  any  minute.  Hadn't  you  bet 
ter  write  before  it's  too  late?" 

74 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

Somewhat  cheered  by  this  ingenious  mes 
sage  to  his  lady,  he  said  good-by  to  the  friendly 
operator  and  whizzed  off  to  the  Inter-Ocean 
Hotel.  It  had  been  a  severe  disappointment 
to  have  to  spend  the  night  in  a  section  house 
twenty  miles  from  Cheyenne;  but  this  was  as 
near  as  they  could  get  with  a  leaking  radiator 
pipe.  And  a  deeper  disappointment  awaited 
him  at  the  Cheyenne  post-office.  At  the  gen 
eral  delivery  window  a  thick  bundle  of  letters 
had  been  handed  him  and  he  had  looked  them 
through  while  Johnston  drove  him  to  the  tele 
graph  office.  Then  a  sudden  blight  fell  on 
his  spirits;  there  was  not  a  line  from  Betty 
Albright.  He  had  not  realized  until  that  in 
stant  how  keenly  he  had  looked  forward  to 
getting  this  mail  at  Cheyenne.  He  had  not 
been  surprised  to  find  nothing  from  her  at 
Chicago — he  had  seen  her  so  recently;  at 
Omaha  he  was  disappointed,  but  hopeful; 
but  to  find  not  so  much  as  a  post  card  from  her 
at  Cheyenne  was  a  blow. 

He  could  not  console  himself  with  the 
thought  that  she  did  not  know  where  to  write 
— the  route  of  the  Nero  had  been  in  half  the 
papers  of  the  country,  owing  to  his  enterprise 
in  the  advertising  line;  he  had  himself  sent 
her  a  list  of  the  important  stops,  and  his  wires 

75 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

had  been  frequent  and  suggestive.  No,  in 
some  way  he  had  fallen  from  grace.  Or  had 
he  been  supplanted?  That  thought  was  un 
bearable;  he  fell  furiously  to  work  on  his 
preparations  for  the  next  stage  of  the  jour 
ney. 

There  was  five  hours'  work  to  be  done  be 
fore  they  could  go  on.  A  new  radiator  pipe 
was  put  in,  and  to  guard  against  another 
break  from  sage  brush  a  piece  of  sheet  iron 
was  fastened  from  the  front  axle  to  the  bot 
tom  of  the  radiator.  Fleming  himself  dropped 
the  engine  and  took  out  the  pistons  for  a 
thorough  examination.  To  his  satisfaction 
they  were  found  to  be  as  smooth  as  glass,  in 
fact  in  better  condition  than  when  the  engine 
was  set  up. 

;'  This  little  old  car,"  said  Johnston  with 
pride  as  he  installed  a  new  set  of  dry  batteries, 
"  will  go  some  yet.  She  looks  like  the  morn 
ing  after  the  battle,  thanks  to  that  bridge  go 
ing  down,  but  she's  all  here."  Then  he  stopped 
and  looked  suspiciously  at  the  supplies  Flem 
ing  was  stowing  away  in  the  tonneau.  "I 
never  did  seem  to  like  canned  tomatoes,"  he 
said  discontentedly. 

Fleming  smiled.  "  You'll  like  'em,  my  boy, 
before  we're  out  of  Wyoming.  They'll  be 

76 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

nectar  and  ambrosia  some  day  when  there's 
only  alkali  water  to  drink  and  nothing  but 
jack-rabbit  stew  on  the  menu.  My  friend  of 
the  broken  nose  back  there  in  the  section  house 
put  me  on  to  the  valuable  properties  of  canned 
tomatoes.  He  says  they're  food  and  drnk  in 
a  country  where  you  can't  get  either  for  a 
hundred  miles  at  a  stretch." 

Fleming  had  returned  from  a  shopping  ex 
pedition  with  a  boy  at  his  heels  loaded  to  the 
chin,  and  in  the  tonneau  besides  the  despised 
tomatoes  he  stowed  away  blankets,  coffee, 
bacon,  sugar,  condensed  milk  and  crackers. 
The  sharpened  sprags  had  already  been  ad 
justed  to  the  rear  axle,  and  the  sand-tires, 
which  had  been  expressed  to  Cheyenne,  were 
strapped  to  the  rear  mudguards.  The  car,  al 
ready  minus  most  of  its  paint  and  polish,  had 
the  air  of  a  scarred  old  veteran. 

At  noon  there  was  very  little  left  to  do,  and 
Fleming  had  time,  as  he  ate  a  hurried  meal  at 
his  hotel,  to  wonder  how  far  west  of  them  his 
rival  had  got.  As  he  finished  his  lunch  a  swift 
remembrance  of  what  the  telegraph  operator 
had  said  to  him  about  Heinze's  "  palace"  came 
to  him.  He  wrote  a  note  and  left  it  with  the 
clerk  for  Sid;  and  then  he  inquired  the  way 
to  the  Crystal  Palace. 

77 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

As  he  turned  the  second  corner  he  came  to 
a  sudden  stop.  Drawn  up  at  the  curb  was  the 
Superba,  conspicuously  ready  to  be  off;  and 
at  the  wheel  was  Vannuccini's  mechanic,  un- 
disguisedly  restless. 

"Why,  hello,  Jarvis!  "  Fleming  said.  "Not 
off  yet?  " 

Jarvis  grunted  expressively  and  looked  with 
a  faint  grin  at  the  building  in  front  of  which 
they  stood.  There  was  no  need  for  Fleming 
to  turn  around;  he  knew  the  place  was  the 
Crystal  Palace,  and  he  felt  ashamed  of  him 
self  that  he  could  feel  rather  pleased. 

"Mr.  Vannuccini  in  there?"  he  asked. 

Jarvis  humped  himself  over  the  steering 
wheel.  "  Been  there  most  of  the  night,"  he 
said — •"  and  two  hours  this  morning.  I  guess 
the  Count  thinks  he's  back  in  Monte  Carlo. 
Say,  you  couldn't  just  step  in  there  and  re 
mind  him  of  what  he's  out  here  for — could 
you?" 

"  I  could,"  said  Fleming ;  and  he  turned 
over  in  his  mind  several  things.  "But  I 
won't! "  he  added. 

He  had  caught  the  familiar  beat  of  his  own 
motor  approaching,  and  it  put  an  end  to  any 
quixotic  impulse  he  might  have  given  way  to. 
"  I  really  haven't  time,"  he  smiled  at  Jarvis. 

78 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

The  man  impatiently  fingered  his  spark  lever; 
and  as  the  Nero  gathered  speed  down  the 
street,  they  heard  an  angry  blast  from  their 
rival's  car. 

Fleming  looked  back.  In  the  relentless 
morning  light  the  Crystal  Palace  presented  a 
front  as  coldly  ugly  as  it  had  been  brilliantly 
attractive  the  night  before.  In  the  noonday 
sun  it  might  have  been  taking  a  siesta  for  all 
signs  of  life  Fleming  could  discern.  No  one 
was  going  in,  and  what  was  more  to  the  point 
— no  one  was  coming  out. 

"I  always  suspected  a  joint  in  his  armor," 
said  Fleming  to  himself,  "but  I  didn't  know 
it  was  that  kind  of  a  joint." 

"What  d'you  say?"  asked  Sid. 

"  I  was  talking  to  myself,"  returned  Flem 
ing  ;  but  he  looked  around  at  his  mechanic  with 
a  new  expression  in  his  eyes.  "  Sid,"  he  added 
soberly,  "  you  and  I  have  got  to  win  this 
race." 

Johnston  stopped  in  the  middle  of  a  ballad 
he  was  warbling.  "  Sure!"  was  all  he  said; 
but  Fleming  knew  he  understood. 


79 


CHAPTER  VIII 

FROM  Cheyenne  to  Medicine  Bow,  not 
as  the  Union  Pacific,  but  as  the  crow 
flies,  is  120  miles — if  you  keep  the 
trail.  Part  of  the  way  this  trail  follows  the 
old  route  of  the  emigrant ;  over  it,  perhaps  ten 
times  a  year,  wagons  venture;  but  for  miles 
at  a  stretch  it  is  a  slender  thread,  so  faint 
that  it  is  difficult  for  anyone  save  a  rancher 
or  sheepman  to  follow.  From  Cheyenne, 
six  thousand  feet  above  the  sea,  the  trail 
drops  to  a  great  plain,  in  the  center  of  which 
is  Laramie.  From  this  plain  the  country 
steadily  rises  to  meet  the  vanguard  of  the 
Rockies. 

For  twenty  miles  after  leaving  Cheyenne, 
Fleming  kept  the  railroad  in  sight  as  it 
dropped  down  through  hills  which  were  like 
the  undulations  of  a  great  sea.  With  Granite 
Canyon  behind  them,  he  decided  to  steer  their 
course  straight  away  for  Medicine  Bow.  The 
trail  lay  ahead,  merely  two  wheel  ruts  through 
the  scant  grass,  sand  and  sage  brush;  but  still 
sufficiently  plain  as  long  as  the  light  was  good. 

80 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

For  further  guidance  there  was  a  line  of  tele 
phone  poles,  marching  away  in  a  vanishing 
perspective  over  the  undulations  of  the  prairie. 

"What  beats  me,"  said  Sid  Johnston,  who 
had  been  staring  back  over  his  shoulder  at  in 
tervals  all  afternoon,  "is  that  we  never  seem 
to  get  on.  See  that  big  boulder  back  there? 
Well,  we  passed  that  thing  half  an  hour  ago, 
and  look  at  it  now.  Why,  it  looks  s'if  I  could 
hit  it  with  one  of  those  tomato  cans  if  I  tried. 
The  whole  bloomin'  landscape  seems  to  be 
playing  tag  with  us,  do  you  notice  it?  That 
section  house  back  there  has  come  right  along 
with  us — and  we  left  the  railroad  two  hours 
ago !  It's  a  durned  funny  country,"  he  added 
mournfully. 

Since  his  last  sight  of  the  rails  Sid  had 
ceased  to  sing.  The  sense  of  the  West's  incal 
culable  distances  had  fallen  heavily  upon  his 
lively  spirit.  To  his  city-bred  soul  there  was 
something  oppressive  in  this  silent  following 
of  a  deserted  trail  up  and  down,  up  and  down, 
meeting  no  living  soul,  seeing  no  living  thing 
except  a  little  cottontail  whisking  into  its  bur 
row  or  a  rattler  coiled  on  a  warm  patch  of  sand 
beside  the  trail.  The  miraculous  clearness  of 
the  atmosphere,  the  burning  white  sunlight, 
gave  a  sharpness  of  outline  which  was  as  un- 

81 


real  to  Eastern  eyes  as  a  painted  forest  on  the 
stage. 

To  Fleming  the  bigness  and  loneliness  were 
like  a  stimulant.  As  mile  after  mile  the  trail 
unwound  before  him  he  felt  the  exhilaration 
of  the  mariner  steering  through  strange  seas; 
the  unquenchable  spirit  of  youth  rose  within 
him  to  meet  the  demands  of  the  adventure ;  he 
felt  once  more  sure  of  himself  and  his  vic 
tory. 

Not  long  after  sunset  they  lighted  their 
big  searchlight;  for  there  must  be  no  risking 
this  thin  thread  they  were  following.  Ac 
cording  to  Fleming's  calculations  they  should 
soon  see  the  lights  of  Laramie.  Against  the 
velvety  darkness  of  the  sky  they  could  no 
longer  make  out  the  line  of  telephone  poles; 
but  under  the  searchlight  the  trail  unwound 
plainly  before  them.  Fifteen  minutes,  a  half 
hour  went  by;  and  then  suddenly  Fleming 
threw  out  the  clutch  and  jumped  down  to 
examine  the  ground. 

"  It's  mighty  queer,"  he  said  as  he  straight 
ened  up;  "the  trail  stops  right  here." 

Johnston  climbed  down  as  well.  It  was 
true — as  a  schoolboy  wipes  a  line  from  a  slate, 
the  trail  had  come  to  an  end.  It  was  rather 
creepy — this  sponging  out  of  what  had  been 

82 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

for  them  as  good  as  a  highway.  All  about 
them  was  silence  and  a  sort  of  luminous  dark 
ness. 

"  I  remember  seeing  a  trail  branching  off 
two  miles  back,"  said  Fleming;  "we'll  run 
back  and  have  a  try  at  it.  If  we  hadn't  been 
tenderfeet  we'd  probably  have  seen  that  one 
was  the  right  trail." 

But  it  was  not  the  right  trail.  They  fol 
lowed  it  for  ten  miles,  their  confidence  in  it 
increasing,  when  again  like  a  line  on  a  slate 
it  was  wiped  out,  under  their  very  search 
light! 

"No  more  of  this,"  said  Fleming;  "I  be 
gin  to  feel  as  if  I  was  seeing  things.  We'll 
steer  by  the  compass ;  unless  we've  run  around 
it,  Laramie  is  off  there  somewhere  to  the 
northwest." 

But  the  difficulty  of  steering  an  automobile 
by  compass  lies  in  the  fact  that  it  is  impossible 
to  get  a  true  bearing  unless  the  compass  is 
taken  out  and  away  from  the  car.  Hindered 
by  frequent  stops  darkness  complete  and  baf 
fling  was  upon  them  before  they  had  made 
ten  miles  to  the  northwest.  As  he  drove  at 
low  speed  through  the  night  some  instinct 
rather  than  a  visual  warning  made  Fleming 
suddenly  throw  out  the  clutch  and  stop.  Be- 

83 


yond  the  radius  of  their  searchlight  the  black 
ness  seemed  to  deepen.  When  Fleming  went 
ahead  to  reconnoiter  he  found  that  the  front 
wheels  of  their  car  had  stopped  just  at  the 
brink  of  a  narrow  gulley  which  in  the  dark 
ness  seemed  to  drop  down  to  unfathomable 
depths.  Fleming  felt  an  uncommonly  queer 
sensation  playing  up  and  down  his  spine  as 
he  thought  of  what  might  have  been  if  they 
had  run  two  feet  farther.  It  was  a  relief  to 
hear  Johnston's: 

"  Say,  I  guess  I'll  walk  the  rest  of  the 
way!" 

Fleming  turned  the  car  about  and  drove  at 
random  with  a  desperate  feeling  that  they 
must  keep  moving.  Presently  their  search 
light  picked  up  another  trail;  they  followed 
it  for  five  miles,  only  to  see  it  sink  as  the  others 
had  done,  into  the  prairie. 

"  I'm  done,"  said  Fleming,  wearily.  "  I  own 
up  that  I  don't  know  where  we  are.  We'll 
have  to  camp  here  for  the  night." 

After  they  had  looked  in  vain  for  water 
they  fried  some  bacon  over  a  fire  of  dry  sage 
brush  and  rolled  themselves  in  their  blankets 
to  sleep  the  uneasy  sleep  of  men  unaccus 
tomed  to  using  the  ground  as  a  mattress. 
Across  the  starlit  spaces  the  unearthly  yelp 

84 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

of  a  coyote  startled  them  at  intervals  from 
their  sleep.  The  darkness  deepened  to  the 
black  hour  before  the  dawn ;  and  then  a  somber 
gray  light  stole  over  the  prairie.  It  had 
lightened  to  a  line  of  scarlet  at  the  horizon 
before  Fleming  woke,  with  a  painful  stiffness 
in  all  his  joints. 

The  first  thing  he  saw,  after  rubbing  the 
sleep  from  his  eyes,  was  a  thin  line  of  smoke 
rising  apparently  not  more  than  three  miles 
to  the  north  of  them.  It  was  moving  slowly 
east  and  could  mean  only  one  thing — a  loco 
motive.  Sid  was  wakened  without  ceremony; 
their  blankets  were  thrown  into  the  tonneau 
and  the  car  was  put  at  the  best  speed  possible 
towards  this  cheering  sign  of  civilization. 

"  I  never  saw  anything  that  looked  so  good 
to  me,"  said  Johnston  as  they  sighted  a  siding 
of  the  Union  Pacific.  In  the  pink  morning 
light  smoke  was  rising  from  a  section  boss's 
house;  the  boss  himself  stood  looking  after 
an  engine  and  caboose  which  vanished  in  the 
distance.  The  section  boss's  wife  said  they 
sure  could  have  breakfast;  and  never  had  the 
voice  of  woman  sounded  a  pleasanter  note. 

They  learned  from  the  section  boss  that  they 
were  thirty  miles  west  of  Laramie.  In  their 
nocturnal  ramble  they  had  skirted  Sheep 

85 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

Mountain;  and  zigzagged  nearly  the  distance 
to  Medicine  Bow,  which  now  lay  fifty  miles 
to  the  north  of  them.  When  asked  to  explain 
the  mystifying  behavior  of  the  trails  they  had 
followed  during  the  night,  the  section  boss 
laughed. 

"  They  wasn't  trails ;  anybody  but  a  tender 
foot  would  know  they  was  just  old  sheep- 
wagon  tracks,  made  when  the  herders  drove 
the  sheep  out  in  the  fall.  Of  course  they 
don't  go  anywhere — couldn't  you  tell  that  by; 
the  way  they  was  worn?" 

Fleming  admitted  he  had  not  been  able  to 
do  so;  and  he  listened  respectfully  while  the 
section  boss  and  his  wife  piled  directions  upon 
him  anent  the  trail  to  Medicine  Bow.  But  he 
did  not  intend  to  dally  any  longer  with  so 
coquettish  a  thing  as  a  trail.  Medicine  Bow 
lay  to  the  north,  and  he  had  his  compass. 
Keeping  in  sight  a  line  of  hills  he  knew  to 
be  Snowy  Mountains,  he  struck  bodly  out 
across  country.  The  difficulties  of  the  way  he 
found  to  be  not  inconsiderable,  for  numerous 
small  streams  vein  the  Elk  Mountain  country, 
fords  are  uncertain  and  often  treacherous,  and 
here  and  there  a  spring  freshet  has  washed 
out  gulches  to  the  depth  of  twenty  or  thirty 
feet.  Twice  their  windlass  and  cable  came 

86 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

into  use;  and  once  they  crossed  a  deep  and 
narrow  canyon  near  a  spur  of  the  Union 
Pacific  on  two  railroad  ties. 

It  was  early  afternoon  when,  nearly  ex 
hausted,  they  sighted  Elk  Mountain  rearing 
its  head  through  the  clear  air.  They  were 
coming  into  the  land  of  the  antelope  and 
prairie  hen.  Also  the  pervasive  sage  brush 
seemed  with  each  mile  to  grow  stronger  and 
more  difficult  to  dodge.  At  four  o'clock  they 
passed  the  tin  cans  and  old  boots  which  form 
the  fringe  of  Medicine  Bow. 

Sunday  night  in  Medicine  Bow  is  a  time  of 
abandonment  to  all  social  delights.  There  is 
only  one  street  in  the  "  town,"  but  wide  open 
to  this  thoroughfare  are  the  Happy  Home  sa 
loon  and  others  as  skillfully  named.  Every 
sheep  and  cattle  ranch  for  a  vast  circle  around 
is  hilariously  represented.  Tongues  and  pens 
have  sung  the  "toughness"  of  this  handful 
of  saloons;  no  novel  of  Western  life  is  com 
plete  without  a  chapter  devoted  to  Medicine 
Bow;  it  has  even  been  touched  up  for  theatri 
cal  purposes.  But  to  Fleming  it  seemed  the 
f orlornest  place  he  had  ever  been  in.  In  front 
of  a  wooden  building  which  had  a  false  front 
to  represent  a  second  story,  a  cowboy  sprawled 
on  his  horse  talking  to  a  girl  in  a  red  shirt- 

87 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

waist  who  leaned  to  him  from  a  window  under 
a  sign  bearing  the  legend: 

"  Hot  lunch  and  bakery.  Meals  by  the  day 
or  week." 

There  were  so  many  saloons  that  Fleming 
wondered  where  the  population  lived.  A  lan 
guid  individual  or  two  leaned  against  the 
wooden  fronts  of  these  convivial  centers;  in 
the  clean  golden  light  of  sunset  everything 
seemed  somnolently  waiting.  Then  suddenly, 
as  if  the  honk  of  his  horn  was  a  cue  on  the 
stage,  the  cowboy's  bronco  began  to  buck 
viciously  and  the  street  filled  with  men.  The 
languid  individual  put  his  head  in  at  a  win 
dow  and  yelled: 

"Hi,  boys!  here's  another!" 

Fleming  had  no  time  to  reflect  what  "  an 
other  "  might  mean  before  they  were  swarm 
ing  over  the  car.  They  sat  on  the  running 
board  and  piled  six  deep  in  the  tonneau, 
clamoring  for  a  ride.  Fleming  saw  at  once 
the  uselessness  of  remonstratina-  with  a  crowd 

•zij 

so  uproariously  bent  on  diversion.     He  asked 
if  they  were  all  there,  and  they  pointed  out 
the  cowboy  whose  horse  had  taken  him  career 
ing  over  the  prairie  at  first  sight  of  the  car. 
"Poor  George!  he'd  like  to  ride  with  you," 


88 


THE    CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

they  said,  "  but  he  seems  to  be  in  a  hurry. 
And  the's  two  greasers  in  th'  Happy  Home 
that  're  patchin'  th'mselves  up  from  a  knife 
fight.  They  can't  come;  but  we're  all  here. 
Now  let  her  out  a  notch." 

Fleming  circled  twice  around  town,  spilling 
passengers  at  each  sharp  corner — an  incident 
received  with  yells  of  delight  by  those  who 
stuck  on — and  then  drew  up  at  what  they 
informed  him  was  the  boarding-house. 

The  mistress  of  the  boarding-house  had  a 
shrewd  eye  and  an  exaggerated  pompadour. 
She  was  probably  thirty,  but  life  and  the 
merciless  winds  of  the  West  had  served  her  ill ; 
she  looked  forty.  She  welcomed  Fleming 
with  languid  interest.  Supper  would  be 
ready,  she  told  him,  in  fifteen  minutes. 
When  he  asked  if  he  could  have  a  room  in 
which  to  clean  up  a  bit,  she  looked  offended, 
but  showed  him  to  a  tiny  bedroom  opening  off 
the  long  dining-room.  On  a  pine  stand  there 
was  a  washbowl  and  a  pitcher — probably  the 
only  ones  in  the  house.  The  pitcher  was  empty, 
and  as  Mrs.  Maguire  returned  with  it  full, 
she  looked  at  him  with  a  puzzled  expression. 
Then  she  retired  to  the  door,  where  she  leaned, 
staring  at  him  thoughtfully.  She  was  plainly 


89 


not  going  to  leave  him  to  his  ablutions;  so 
Fleming  poured  water  into  the  bowl  and  took 
some  soap  from  his  suitcase. 

"  The'  was  some  soap  in  the  dish,"  she  said 
absently,  "  if  them  girls  ain't  used  it  all  up." 
Fleming  replied,  but  she  did  not  hear  him. 
She  was  turning  over  something  in  her  mind. 

"Where  was  you  born?"  she  said  presently. 
Fleming  named  his  native  town. 

"I  knew  it!"  she  cried;  and  there  was 
something  in  her  tone  that  made  Fleming  turn 
to  look  at  her.  The  hard  lines  of  her  face 
had  melted  into  a  hungry  look;  she  came  a 
step  or  two  into  the  room. 

" I  was  born  there,  too!  "  she  said.  " I  knew 
I'd  seen  you  before.  You  used  to  pass  our 
place  every  day;  that  was  ten  years  ago,  but 
I'm  a  great  hand  fer  faces.  Sav,  who  runs 
The  Oasis  now?" 

Fleming  could  have  laughed  at  the  ques 
tion,  but  for  something  pathetic  and  wistful 
in  the  woman's  tone.  He  told  her  he  had  not 
been  in  his  native  town  for  some  years  and 
was  ignorant  of  the  present  ownership  of  the 
famous  saloon.  He  asked  why  she  wished  to 
know. 

"My  father  used  to  run  The  Oasis!"  she 
declared,  and  it  was  as  if  she  said  her  father 

90 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

had  been  Mayor,  or  president  of  the  bank. 
'  Yes,  indeed,  we  owned  The  Oasis,  and  it  was 
the  swellest  place  in  town  then.  Fixtures  an* 
pictures  all  brought  from  New  York.  Say, 
do  you  know  what's  become  of  Fritz's  place 
— next  the  theater?  And  Jimmy  Burk — 
d'you  know  him? — how's  he  doing? " 

She  pushed  her  pompadour  back  from  a 
face  that  had  become  all  at  once  alive  with 
interest,  and  sat  down  on  the  edge  of  the 
bed. 

For  half  an  hour  she  questioned  Fleming 
about  her  native  town,  and  old  acquaintances 
in  that  shady  stratum  of  society  which  she 
evidently  looked  back  upon  as  a  lost  paradise. 
She  talked,  with  her  hungry  eyes  fixed  upon 
Fleming's  face,  until  the  increasing  rattle  of 
dishes  in  the  dining-room  brought  her  out  of 
the  past. 

"I  gotta  see  about  supper,"  she  said.  At 
the  door  she  turned  back  with  an  air  of 
apology  which  sat  oddly  on  her  defiant  face. 

"  This  place  I'm  runnin'  ain't  The  Oasis," 
she  said;  "but  the  best  we've  got  is  yours, 
Mr.  Fleming." 

At  supper  she  proved  her  sincerity  by  an 
attention  to  himself  and  Johnston  that 
brought  down  upon  them  the  frankly;  cynical 

91 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

amusement  of  the  others  at  the  long  table. 
Under  cover  of  a  laugh  at  the  expense  of  the 
red-haired  waitress,  Johnston  told  Fleming 
that  he  had  run  across  Vannuccini's  mechanic 
in  the  street.  He  had  learned  from  him  that 
the  red  car  was  standing,  ready  for  departure, 
at  the  back  of  the  boarding-house. 

"  Vannuccini  got  in  here  at  noon,"  Sid  in 
formed  him.  "  He  was  smart  enough  to  get 
a  cowboy  in  Cheyenne  for  pilot ;  that's  how  he 
beat  us.  But  I  got  it  out  of  Jarvis  that  he 
had  to  put  in  a  new  connecting  rod,  and  while 
he  was  doing  that  Vannuccini  skidded  into  one 
of  those  joints  on  the  Boulevard  out  there — • 
and  he's  there  now." 

"Roulette?" 

"That's  what  it  looks  like.  You'd  ought 
to  see  Jarvis'  phiz — he's  wild." 

Fleming  pushed  back  his  chair.  "  They 
tell  me  it's  a  good  trail  from  here  to  Raw- 
lins,"  he  said  thoughtfully.  "How's  the 
car?" 

Johnston  followed  him  to  the  door  eagerly. 
"  Say,  let's  slide  out.  There's  going  to  be 
a  moon;  we  could  make  Rawlins  before  day 
light  and  be  eighty  miles  to  the  good.  Shall 
I  bring  the  car  around? " 

Fleming  considered;  but  someone  touched 
92 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

him  on  the  elbow.  The  mistress  of  the  board 
ing-house  leaned  in  the  doorway.  For  a  femi 
nine  reason  she  had  made  a  toilet  and  looked 
a  year  or  two  younger  in  a  white  shirt  waist 
with  a  red  bow  at  her  throat. 

"Is  that  a  friend  of  yours  over  in  Monte's 
place? "  she  asked. 

She  put  the  question  casually,  but  she  low 
ered  her  voice  as  she  did  so. 

"The  Italian?"  said  Fleming. 

"The  fellow  that  come  in  the  red  automo 
bile,"  she  returned.  "  If  he's  a  friend  of 
yours,  you'd  better  get  him  out  of  Monte's 
place.  He's  been  playing  there  since  he  blew 
in  here — and  he  don't  lose  like  a  man  has  to 
if  he  wants  to  be  popular  out  here.  The 
boys"  (she  looked  over  her  shoulder  into  the 
dining-room) ,  "  they've  fixed  it  to  have  a  little 
fun  with  him  to-night — and  the  boys  ain't 
gentle  when  they  once  get  started." 

Fleming  reflected :  could  he  call  Vannuccini 
a  friend  of  his? 

"We  could  make  pretty  good  use  of  an 
eighty-mile  start,  Mr.  Fleming,"  said  Johns 
ton  at  his  elbow. 

From  where  he  stood  Fleming  could  see  the 
road  to  Rawlins  stretching  towards  the  fading 
light  of  the  west.  He  looked  over  his  shoul- 

93 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

der  at  the  noisy  crowd  that  was  gulping  down 
its  last  cup  of  coffee  at  the  long  table;  they 
certainly  did  not  look  gentle. 

'  Yes,"  he  said  slowly,  "  I  guess  you  can 
call  Vannuccini  a  friend  of  mine.  Which 
way  is  Monte 's  place?" 


CHAPTER  IX 

PLAYING  opposite  to  Vannuccini  in 
Monte's  place  was  a  one-eyed  man, 
an  excellent  understudy  to  Captain 
Hook.  His  one  eye — small  and  of  an  icy  blue 
• — observed  Fleming  when  he  entered  the  place ; 
if  the  others  at  the  table  saw  him  likewise, 
they  made  no  sign.  Vannuccini  had  evidently 
got  past  seeing  or  hearing  anything  around 
him.  He  played  with  an  intense  absorption 
in  the  game,  silently,  and  with  the  true 
gambler's  avidity.  If,  as  the  mistress  of  the 
boarding-house  hinted,  he  had  been  losing 
during  the  afternoon,  he  was  plainly  ahead 
of  the  game  now.  The  chips  were  stacked  at 
his  elbow,  and  there  was  something  in  the  ugly 
hump  of  the  croupier's  shoulders  that  told 
Fleming  the  luck  was  not  all  with  the  West. 

Fleming  asked  for  a  drink  at  the  bar  and 
looked  around  him.  Just  behind  Vannuccini 
the  bartender  had  lighted  a  kerosene  lamp  and 
pulled  a  pair  of  dirty  red  curtains  over  the 
front  window.  Fleming  noticed  there  was 
another  uncurtained  window  at  the  side  of 

95 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

the  room,  just  back  of  the  dealer.  In  the 
corner  nearest  the  bar  two  Mexicans  and  a 
cowboy  were  at  the  crap  table;  the  men  from 
the  boarding-house  strolled  in  by  twos  and 
threes.  Fleming  was  wondering  where  Jar- 
vis  was,  when  he  caught  a  glance  that  passed 
between  the  croupier  and  the  one-eyed  man. 
It  was  plainly  a  signal.  The  latter  leaned 
back  in  his  chair  and  yawned. 

"Oh,  me  gran'mother! "  he  said.  "This 
is  a  slow  game ! " 

Fleming  moved  carelessly  around  till  he 
stood  with  his  back  to  the  window.  The  room 
had  grown  suddenly  quiet.  There  followed 
a  conversation  between  the  one-eyed  man  and 
the  dealer  in  the  jargon  of  the  cattle  country 
which  everyone  in  the  room,  except  the  East 
erners,  understood.  Fleming  could  make  out 
only  its  tone — which  was  not  complimentary. 
The  cowboys  from  the  boarding-house  pressed 
closer  and  laughed  uproariously  as  he  of  the 
one  eye  drawled: 

"  Shall  we  vend  his  brand,  boys?  " 

Vannuccini  had  waited  with  Latin  polite 
ness  for  the  game  to  go  on.  He  now  rapped 
sharply  on  the  table  as  he  intimated  that  he 
covered  the  cloth. 

"  Oh,  you  do,  do  you?"  said  the  man  oppo- 
96 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

site.  "Well,  I  guess  maybe  you  don't  dast!  " 
The  palpable  insult  would  have  warned  any 
one  but  a  rank  outsider  that  the  room  was 
playing  him  for  a  fight.  But  Vannuccini 
only  stared.  His  black  eyes  were  brilliant 
with  anger.  He  was  at  least  no  coward.  He 
rapped  sharply  on  the  table  with  his  big  seal 
ring,  and  said: 

"You  lie,  sir!" 

There  was  only  a  second  between  that  re 
mark  and  the  uproar  that  followed,  but  in  that 
instant  Fleming  was  aware  that  the  window 
had  been  thrown  up  from  the  outside  and  a 
voice  whispered  at  his  back,  sharply: 

"  Get  down !  they're  goin'  to  shoot  up  the 
lights!" 

Fleming  dropped  to  the  floor  instinctively; 
and  over  his  head  the  room  resounded  with  the 
crack  of  six-shooters  as  the  three  lamps  in  the 
place  crashed  into  darkness.  Amidst  the  hub 
bub  Fleming  heard  an  Italian  oath;  he  threw 
himself  toward  it  through  a  tangle  of  legs. 
Vannuccini  was  in  his  leathers  just  as  he  had 
driven  in  that  afternoon,  and  Fleming  knew 
him  at  once  when  he  touched  his  arm.  The 
Italian  had  put  his  back  to  the  wall  and  was 
striking  out  valiantly  right  and  left.  Flem 
ing  seized  his  arm  and  called  him  by  name, 

97 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

telling  him  to  make  for  the  window.  In  the 
flash  from  a  six-shooter,  whose  discharge  shat 
tered  the  top  panes  of  their  window,  Fleming 
saw  the  mistress  of  the  boarding-house.  She 
looked  merely  anxious  and  not  at  all  fright 
ened.  In  the  uproar  and  confusion  Fleming 
crouched  down  and  made  his  way  close  by  the 
wall  to  the  window.  Before  the  next  pistol 
shot  he  was  shoving  Vannuccini  outside.  The 
mistress  of  the  boarding-house  was  at  their  side 
instantly. 

'You  gotta  run  for  it,"  she  said;  "come 
on  this  way." 

They  followed  her  in  the  darkness  through 
the  back  premises  of  a  second  saloon  and  thus 
to  the  rear  of  the  boarding-house.  While  they 
were  yards  away  Fleming  heard  the  purr  of 
his  motor  and  knew  that  Johnston  was  ready 
for  them.  They  had  barely  reached  the  Nero 
when  they  heard  the  yells  and  drunken  laugh 
ter  of  the  crowd  in  Monte's  place  as  it  burst 
out  into  the  street.  There  was  a  crescendo 
note  in  their  merriment  that  told  their  direc 
tion  plainly. 

'You'd  better  move  on,"  said  the  mistress 
of  the  boarding-house.  "Run  through  that 
vacant  lot  there  and  you'll  strike  the  street 
ahead  of  the  gang." 

98 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

Without  ceremony  Fleming  pushed  Van- 
nuccini,  who  was  swearing  Italian  vengeance 
and  shaking  his  fist  toward  the  sound  of  the 
approaching  enemy,  into  the  tonneau  of  the 
Nero.  As  he  followed  he  pressed  some  money 
into  the  woman's  hand  with  a  hasty  word  of 
thanks  for  her  intervention.  But  before  he 
had  thrown  in  the  clutch  she  had  climbed  on 
the  running  board  and  was  pushing  the  money 
back  into  his  hand. 

"  I  don't  want  it,"  she  gasped — "  not  from 
you — you  knew  The  Oasis." 

She  had  dropped  off  and  slipped  into  the 
darkness  before  Fleming  could  speak.  In  an 
instant  they  were  bumping  over  the  vacant  lot 
toward  the  street,  and  the  yells  of  their 
late  friends  sounded  at  their  back.  Fleming 
looked  behind  and  saw  that  Jarvis  had  slipped 
out  from  the  shadow  of  a  house  with  the  red 
car  and  was  close  at  their  heels.  The  crowd 
from  Monte's  place  saw  him  just  as  he  was 
vanishing  into  the  dark  at  the  fringe  of  the 
town.  With  a  whoop  of  chagrin  they  emp 
tied  their  guns  in  his  direction  and  made  a 
rush  for  their  horses.  Their  shots  nicked 
the  paint  from  the  red  Superba  and  whistled 
over  the  head  of  the  unfortunate  Jarvis. 
Truly,  as  the  mistress  of  the  boarding-house 

99 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

had  said,  the  boys  were  not  gentle  when  they 
started  out  for  fun. 

Fleming  threw  in  his  high  speed,  for  in 
spite  of  the  fact  that  it  appeared  on  the  sur 
face  a  drunken  joke,  he  realized  that  there  had 
been  something  more  than  fun  in  the  atmos 
phere  of  Monte's  place.  What  provocation 
Vannuccini  might  have  given  them  he  did  not 
know,  but  from  all  appearances  he  had  suc 
ceeded  in  stirring  up  a  great  deal  of  the  latent 
ire  of  Medicine  Bow. 

When  the  lights  of  the  town  twinkled  small 
behind  them,  Fleming  stopped  and  Vannuc 
cini  climbed  into  his  own  car.  There  had  been 
very  little  conversation  as  they  proceeded. 
Vannuccini,  snug  and  safe  in  the  tonneau,  had 
murmured,  "My  poor  mechanic!  "  as  he  heard 
the  gamesome  gun  play  behind  him;  but  it 
did  not  seem  to  occur  to  him  to  utter  thanks 
for  his  own  deliverance  from  what  might  have 
proved  a  joke  with  a  serious  ending. 

He  descended,  when  Fleming  intimated 
that  he  might  do  so  safely,  with  a  suave  word 
of  acknowledgment  for  the  use  of  Fleming's 
car.  Then  he  climbed  to  his  seat,  took  the 
wheel  from  Jarvis,  and  with  a  polite  "  Permit 
me!"  drove  ahead  of  the  Nero  and  whizzed 
off  into  the  darkness. 

100 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

Johnston  threw  himself  back  with  a  moan 
of  disgust.  "  Say,"  he  exclaimed,  "wouldn't 
you  think  he'd  have  the  decency  to  give  us 
the  road  when  you've  just  pulled  him  out  of 
a  mix-up  like  that!" 

Fleming  said  nothing,  hut  his  face  went 
white  under  its  sunburn.  He  savagely  pressed 
down  on  the  throttle  till  the  staunch  little  car 
was  bouncing  over  the  decidedly  indifferent 
road  at  a  rattling  pace.  The  great  harvest 
moon  came  up  and  flooded  the  plain  with  its 
unreal  white  light;  ahead  of  them,  growing 
very  gradually  smaller,  and  now  and  then 
going  out  altogether  as  a  dip  in  the  trail  hid 
it,  they  could  see  the  powerful  searchlight  of 
the  big  Superba.  A  coyote  barked  from  a 
distant  bluff ;  once  they  descended  into  a  wide, 
saucerlike  valley  where  in  the  moonlight  a 
thousand  head  of  cattle  lay.  An  hour  before 
the  dawn  they  reached  Rawlins,  where  they 
allowed  themselves  six  hours  for  rest  and  the 
overhauling  of  the  car. 

Bending  over  his  map  in  the  Ferris  Hotel  at 
Rawlins,  Fleming  remarked  to  his  mechanic 
that  judging  from  the  number  of  towns  scat 
tered  along  the  Union  Pacific  they  would  have 
no  difficulty  getting  gasolene  and  water  on 
the  next  stage  of  their  journey.  A  keen- 

101 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

eyed,  long-legged  man  in  a  sombrero  and  a 
rusty  frock  coat  sat  near  them,  frankly  listen 
ing  to  their  conversation.  When  Fleming's 
remark  about  the  towns  along  the  Union 
Pacific  came  to  his  ear  he  slouched  down  in 
his  chair,  spat  in  the  general  direction  of  a 
cuspidor,  and  shook  with  inward  laughter. 
Presently  he  leaned  over  the  arm  of  his  chair 
and  said  in  a  gentle,  Southern  drawl: 

"  Stranger,  ah  you-all  acquainted  with  the 
.Union  Pacific?" 

Fleming  admitted  a  mere  bowing  acquaint 
ance  with  that  road. 

"  Ah  thought  you-all  was  some  ignorant," 
the  man  in  the  sombrero  went  on;  he  rose  and 
traced  with  a  long  forefinger  the  line  from 
Rawlins  to  Granger. 

"Fillmore — Latham,"  he  read,  and 
chuckled  again.  "  They  look  right  cute  on 
the  map,  don't  they?  But  they  ahn't  what 
you'd  call  towns;  nor  yet  hamlets.  Why,  my 
son,  between  here  an'  Rock  Springs — that's 
130  miles — there  ahn't  enough  folks  to  make 
up  a  prayer  meetin'  or  a  lynchin'  bee.  Those 
cute  towns  on  the  map  ah'  sidings,  or  a  water- 
tank  or  a  cattle  shute,  except  where  they're 
written  down  playful  like  to  fill  up  the  map. 
Wamsutter,  now,  is  a  metropolis.  The's 

102 


thirty  people  in  Wamsutter,  if  you  count 
'em  all.  Bitter  Creek,  a  little  further  along, 
crowds  it  ha'd  with  a  population  of  five. 
The  rest  of  those  names  are  mostly  to  orna 
ment  the  map.  Yes,  suh,  if  you're  travelin' 
through  the  Bitter  Creek  country,  my  advice 
to  you  is  not  to  depend  on  those  map  towns. 
Carry  yo'  own  water  an'  grub  an'  then  yo' 
ahn't  goin'  to  be  disappointed  when  yo'  ex 
pect  a  busy  mart  an'  find  a  sign  with  the 
name  of  a  town  painted  on  it — an'  nothin' 


mo'! 


This  light  on  the  next  stage  of  their  jour 
ney  they  found  to  be  of  the  greatest  value. 
When  they  slipped  out  of  Rawlins  at  eleven 
that  morning,  the  Nero  carried  gasolene  and 
water  to  its  fullest  capacity.  Every  bolt  and 
nut  had  been  tightened;  the  engine  and  run 
ning  gear  had  been  looked  to;  the  car  was 
put  into  ship-shape  condition.  The  commis 
sary  department  was  reinforced  by  more 
canned  tomatoes,  and  extra  blankets  were 
added,  for  they  had  already  discovered  that  the 
nights  at  an  altitude  of  seven  thousand  feet 
are  as  cold  as  the  noons  are  warm. 

Not  many  miles  west  from  Rawlins  the  soil 
becomes  distinctly  saline ;  not  even  the  indom 
itable  sage  brush  will  grow  here;  in  its  place 

103 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

spring  up  clumps  of  greasewood  and  saltsage. 
The  desert  begins. 

Fleming  had  determined  to  make  Point  of 
Rocks  that  night.  He  knew  he  had  the  start 
of  Vannuccini  out  of  Rawlins ;  if  no  accidents 
occurred  and  he  could  hold  his  advantage  he 
felt  confident  he  could  keep  the  lead  through 
the  mountains  that  were  ahead  of  him.  After 
a  careful  study  of  the  map  he  decided  to  risk 
leaving  the  railroad.  Even  along  the  Union 
Pacific  there  was  no  trail  worthy  the  name;  if 
instead  of  following  the  dip  of  the  railroad  he 
steered  by  the  compass  straight  across  the  Red 
Desert,  he  would  save  thirty  miles. 

It  meant  boldly  striking  out  an  unknown 
course  through  a  region  never  crossed  by  an 
automobile  before,  but  in  his  present  frame  of 
mind  he  felt  a  perfect  willingness  to  risk  any 
danger  or  hardship  if  he  could  keep  ahead  of 
the  Superba.  He  put  the  matter  to  Sid 
Johnston,  explaining  the  risks  they  ran  in 
getting  away  from  the  railroad  water  supply. 

"Sure!"  said  Johnston,  "I  know  that; 
but  I'd  go  thirsty  any  time  to  cut  out  that 
Dago  now! " 

They  filled  their  radiator  at  a  tank-car  on 
a  siding  of  the  Union  Pacific  and  adjusted 
their  sand-tires.  In  ten  minutes  the  railroad 

104 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

was  lost  to  sight ;  the  Bitter  Creek  country  lay 
before  them. 

Time  was  when  a  man,  to  prove  his  tough 
ness,  had  only  to  assert  that  he  came  from 
Bitter  Creek.  Fleming  understood  the  rea 
son  why  after  he  had  traversed  that  section  of 
Wyoming  with  its  endless  miles  of  sand  and 
saltsage  and  greasewood;  empty,  unproduc 
tive,  trackless.  At  the  edge  of  the  desert 
Bitter  Creek  meanders,  in  the  dry  season  a 
trickle  of  nauseous,  alkaline  water;  after  a 
rain  a  torrent  deep  enough  to  drown  a  man, 
but  still  undrinkable. 

In  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  they  had  an 
unpleasant  surprise — they  discovered  the  trail 
of  another  automobile  striking  up  from  the 
south  and  then  turning  west,  evidently  with 
the  intention  of  finding  an  easy  pass  between 
a  line  of  buttes  which  lay  ahead  of  them. 
Fleming  knew  before  he  examined  the  tire 
tracks  that  it  was  the  Superba.  Vannuccini 
had  probably  left  Rawlins  immediately  after 
them;  apparently  he  had  traveled  south  of 
their  route  and  found  better  going,  for  though 
the  trail  was  fresh  and  distinct,  he  must  be  at 
least  five  miles  ahead  of  them.  In  grim 
silence  they  settled  down  to  the  task  of  over 
taking  their  rival. 

105 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

The  sun  was  beginning  to  slant  across  the 
desert  and  Point  of  Rocks  was  thirty  miles 
south  of  them,  when  they  again  sighted  the 
red  car.  They  were  skirting  a  small  but  steep 
butte  when  it  occurred  to  Fleming  to  climb 
to  the  top  and  reconnoiter.  With  a  field  glass 
he  was  able  to  sweep  ten  miles  of  flat  sand, 
lying  between  him  and  Black  Rock  Butte. 
As  he  did  so,  something  seemed  to  disengage 
itself  from  the  tawny  sand,  and  to  move,  a 
bright  spot  against  the  background  of  the  dis 
tant  butte.  The  next  instant  the  sun  glittered 
back  as  from  polished  metal;  and  Fleming 
knew  he  was  looking  at  his  rival's  car. 

But  what  he  could  not  understand,  as  lie 
gazed  through  his  readjusted  glasses,  was  that 
there  seemed  to  be  three  people  out  there  in 
the  desert.  Johnston  climbed  the  butte  and 
said  it  looked  to  him  as  if  Vannuccini  had  met 
a  sheepman  or  cowboy. 

"  But  I  don't  see  any  horse,"  said  Fleming, 
and  then  hastily  made  his  way  back  to  his  car, 
for  the  glass  showed  him  that  the  Superba 
was  swinging  on  its  way  once  more. 

;'  Whoever  the  third  fellow  was,"  said 
Johnston,  as  Fleming  threw  in  his  high  speed 
and  followed  in  the  track  of  the  car  ahead, 
"  they've  left  him  there." 

106 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

He  leveled  the  glass  at  a  spot  near  the  base 
of  the  butte,  then  suddenly  he  leaned  forward 
across  the  dash-board  with  an  exclamation  of 
astonishment. 

"  Oh,  crackey,"  he  whistled ;  "  it  isn't  a  man 
— it's  a  girl!" 


107 


CHAPTER  X 

SHE  stood  out,  a  lonely  figure  against 
the  fantastic  background  of  the  butte, 
facing  the  approaching  car.  Fleming 
thought  as  he  looked  at  her  that  he  had  never 
seen  a  figure  so  finely  poised,  so  perfectly  still, 
and  yet  alert.  A  slight  breeze  had  sprung 
up  across  the  desert;  it  caught  her  scanty 
skirt  and  a  lock  of  her  black  hair,  blowing 
them  back  until  she  was  like  a  small  Vic 
tory — done  in  olive  and  black.  She  was  very 
dark.  Fleming  thought  at  first  she  was  In 
dian;  but  at  a  second  glance  he  knew  better; 
she  might  be  Spanish,  or  even  Italian,  with  her 
beautiful  straight  nose,  her  fine  eyebrows,  and 
her  complexion  of  a  sort  of  dusky  pallor. 
She  made  no  sound  as  they  approached;  she 
merely  held  up  one  hand  with  a  gesture  that 
Johnston  said  afterward  would  have  stopped 
the  Empire  State.  There  was  something  so 
foreign  about  her  that  Fleming  unconsciously 
spoke  very  distinctly. 

"Do  you  speak  English?"  he  said  as  he 
stopped  the  car. 

108 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

The  slightest  curve  appeared  at  the  corner 
of  her  lips. 

"I  sure  do,"  she  replied.  Fleming  was 
amused  and  apologetic. 

"Can  I  be  of  any  assistance?  Where  is 
your  horse?"  he  added. 

The  girl  pointed  southwest.  "He's  back 
there  in  an  arroyo.  He  shied  at  a  jack  rab 
bit  and  backed  over  with  me — I  had  to  shoot 
him,"  she  added  simply. 

"And  since  then  you've — 

"Footed  it,"  she  said.  Fleming  stared. 
Even  he,  a  tenderfoot,  knew  something  of  the 
horror  of  losing  a  horse  in  that  trackless  and 
desolate  country.  But  this  girl  stood  there 
with  the  air  of  a  young  stoic  and  told  a  story 
of  courage  and  endurance  that  was  a  revela 
tion  of  the  spirit  of  the  West. 

"I  wanted  to  get  to  Myricks,"  she  said; 
and  Fleming  learned  that  "  Myricks "  was 
forty  miles  north  of  where  they  had  met  her, 
at  the  foot  of  the  Continental  Divide,  over  a 
line  of  buttes  and  across  an  abomination  of 
desolation  called  an  "  alkali  flat."  She  had 
started  at  daybreak  the  day  before  from  a 
little  settlement  on  the  Union  Pacific  to  ride 
to  Myricks.  Her  bronco,  so  she  said,  could 
have  made  the  distance — a  matter  of  some 

109 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

fifty  miles — before  dark,  if  the  accident  had 
not  occurred. 

"  I  just  had  to  foot  it,"  she  finished. 

"Good  Lord!"  exclaimed  Fleming,  "why 
didn't  you  turn  back?  You  had  only  gone  a 
quarter  of  the  distance ;  you  could  more  easily 
have  walked  back  than  have  gone  on,  couldn't 
you?" 

For  the  first  time  the  girl  looked  confused. 
She  dug  a  little  pit  in  the  sand  with  one  toe 
exactly  as  a  naughty  child  would  have  done, 
and  when  she  looked  up  her  black  eyes  held 
a  sullen  fire. 

"  I  wanted  to  go  to  Myricks,"  she  repeated, 
doggedly. 

Fleming  forbore  to  question  her  further; 
but  there  was  something  in  the  affair  he  did 
not  understand.  When  he  asked  why  Van- 
nuccini  had  not  taken  her  in  her  eyes  flashed 
and  she  drew  herself  up  defiantly. 

"He  would  have  took  me  on  to  Rock 
Springs!"  she  cried. 

"And  you  didn't  want  to  go  to  Rock 
Springs?" 

She  shook  her  head  emphatically,  "No!  " 

"  And  because  you  wouldn't  go  in  his  di 
rection  he  left  you  here — on  foot,  in  the 
desert!" 

no 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

"  Oh,  he  knew  you  was  behind  him.  He 
said  you'd  take  me  in  if  I  waited." 

"Thoughtful  of  him,  I'm  sure,"  Fleming 
said.  "  How  did  he  know  I  wouldn't  branch 
off  his  trail  before  I  reached  you?  What 
would  you  have  done  then?  " 

The  girl  stared  off  across  the  desert  to 
where  the  foothills  of  the  Continental  Divide 
showed  a  purple  hue  against  the  western  sky. 

"  I  should  have  kept  on  till  I  dropped,"  she 
said ;  and  Fleming  noticed  how  pallid  her  face 
had  grown  in  contrast  to  the  purple  black  of 
her  hair. 

"  Well,"  he  returned,  with  a  hasty  cheerful 
ness,  "  I  am  here — so  jump  in.  I  must  make 
Point  of  Rocks  in  two  hours.  From  there 
you  can  notify  your  friends- 
He  stopped,  amazed,  for  the  girl  had  turned 
on  her  heel  and  was  walking  straight  out  into 
the  desert  again.  For  an  instant  he  stared, 
and  then  he  stalked  after  her,  put  his  hand 
with  scant  ceremony  on  her  arm  and  forced 
her  to  face  him. 

"  Look  here,  young  woman,"  he  said,  "  this 
is  no  pleasure  trip  I'm  on.  It  is  extremely 
important  to  me  not  to  go  a  single  mile  out  of 
my  way.  You  propose  that  I  make  a  detour 
of  some  fifty  miles  to  take  you  to  your  friends 

in 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

—and  you  are  unwilling  to  give  me  a  single 
sensible  reason  for  doing  so.  Do  you  call 
that  fair?" 

The  girl's  eyes  widened  in  a  startled  stare. 
Then  suddenly,  to  Fleming's  consternation, 
she  became,  instead  of  a  young  stoic,  a  pas 
sionate  Latin,  her  face  on  fire,  her  hands 
clutching  him,  her  story  poured  out  in  the 
vivid  vernacular  of  the  West. 

It  became  plain  from  the  incoherent  facts 
tumbling  over  each  other  that  she  had  good 
reason  to  resist  being  carried  back  to  Point 
of  Rocks,  for  somewhere  in  that  immediate 
vicinity  a  bridegroom  and  a  bridal  party  were 
scouring  the  country  for  a  missing  bride.  She 
was  the  bride;  and  from  her  frantic  assertions 
the  would-be  groom  was  altogether  detestable, 
loathsome  and  not  to  be  borne ! 

"I  would  walk  till  I  dropped  in  my 
tracks!"  she  cried,  "to  get  out  of  marrying 
that  Miguel !  I  said  '  No '  every  day  for 
three  months,  but  my  aunt  (she's  plumb  stuck 
on  Miguel!)  did  everything.  She  called  the 
priest,  she  made  the  clothes,  she  got  up  a 
supper!  Oh,  she  drove  me  crazy!  I  just  hit 
the  trail  for  Myricks!" 

"Hm-m,"  said  Fleming;  "  where  were  your 
parents  all  this  time?" 

112 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

The  girl  shrugged  a  disdainful  shoulder. 
She  made  it  clear  to  Fleming  that  the  master 
ful  aunt  was  the  real  arbiter  of  her  destiny. 
Parents  there  were,  and  they  lived  in  a  vague 
region  known  as  the  Little  Snake;  but  they 
had  given  her  into  the  hands  of  the  aunt  to 
be  sent  to  school,  and,  evidently,  safely  mar 
ried  off. 

The  girl's  only  disinterested  friends  ap 
peared  to  be  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Myrick,  whose 
present  abode  was  a  sheep  wagon  in  the  foot 
hills  of  the  Divide.  Towards  this  haven  she 
had  set  her  face, — and,  as  Fleming  could  see, 
she  had  set  it  with  a  reckless  and  passionate 
determination. 

Fleming  and  Sid  looked  helplessly  at  each 
other.  This  was  worse  than  a  burnt-out  con 
necting  rod!  Fleming  grew  hot  with  rage 
as  he  thought  of  Vannuccini  speeding  west 
ward  after  having  adroitly  shifted  the  burden 
of  a  runaway  bride  onto  his  rival's  shoulders. 
He  knew  that  only  the  losing  course  was  open 
to  him,  but  he  would  not  give  up  without  one 
more  effort. 

:'You  won't  go  on  with  me  to  Point  of 
Rocks?"  he  asked  the  girl. 

"  I  can't,"  she  said  wearily.  '  You  run 
along,"  she  added,  with  a  hint  of  scorn  in  her 

113 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

voice.     "I'll  foot  it  till  I  hit  the  old  trail— 

mebbe  I'll  meet  someone " 

•  "Don't  talk  nonsense,"  said  Fleming 
sharply.  He  made  room  for  her  amidst  the 
supplies  in  the  tonneau.  "Now  then,  climb 
in!  And  point  out  the  quickest  way  to  this 
Myrick  place,  please." 

Sid  Johnston's  face  was  a  study  in  chagrin 
as  he  pointed  the  car  due  north.  But  he  was 
curious  also,  and  ten  minutes  after  they  had 
left  their  westward  course  he  stole  a  look  at 
their  passenger.  Immediately  he  threw  out 
the  clutch  and  ran  around  to  the  door  of  the 
tonneau.  The  girl  lay  huddled  on  a  pile  of 
tarpaulin  in  the  bottom  of  the  car,  uncon 
scious. 

The  two  men  looked  at  each  other  with 
speechless  dismay.  Fleming  was  the  first  to 
recover  himself.  With  an  exclamation  of 
pity  he  lifted  out  the  girl's  limp  form.  Sid 
frantically  plunged  into  the  tonneau  for 
brandy;  they  managed  between  them  to  give 
her  a  swallow  of  the  stimulant,  and  in  a  few 
minutes  her  eyes  slowly  opened. 

Fleming  was  not  aware  of  the  kindness 
and  pity  in  his  gaze  as  he  bent  over  her,  but 
the  girl  evidently  saw  it,  for  to  his  intense 
embarrassment  she  seized  his  hand  and  put  it 
to  her  cheek.  He  could  feel  her  tears  upon  it. 

114 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

"  You  are  awful  good  to  me,"  she  said 
weakly. 

"Nonsense!  Look  here — when  did  you 
eat  last?" 

"  Yesterday,  about  noon,"  she  replied, 
struggling  to  her  feet.  "  I  guess  that's  why 
I'm  so  wobbly.  But  I'm  all  right  now " 

"Why,  she's  starved!"  Sid  exclaimed,  his 
susceptible  heart  touched  to  the  depths.  With 
a  face  of  wild  concern  he  began  to  forage 
among  the  supplies.  Fleming  helped  him, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  they  had  the  satisfaction 
of  seeing  the  color  come  back  to  their  pro 
tege's  face  with  food  and  drink.  She  was 
touchingly  grateful;  with  a  gay  and  child-like 
manner  she  took  them  into  her  confidence  as 
she  ate.  Her  name,  she  told  them,  was  Ja- 
cinta ;  her  mother  was  Spanish  and  her  father  a 
Missourian — rather  no-account,  she  added 
frankly. 

She  seemed  to  Fleming  a  pathetic  incon 
gruity,  in  her  shabby  corduroy  riding  habit, 
with  her  pretty,  finely  cut  dark  face  and  her 
Western  slang.  She  had  the  Latin  sense  of 
the  picturesque,  too;  for  her  scarlet  hand 
kerchief  was  knotted  to  show  her  fine  throat, 
and  the  sombrero  she  wore  was  exactly  the 
right  frame  for  her  vivid  face. 

It    amused    him    to    see    the    unconscious 

115 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

daughter  of  Eve  come  out  in  her  as  she  re 
gained  her  spirits. 

But  in  the  midst  of  their  impromptu  meal 
she  stopped,  looked  at  the  sky  and  listened  an 
instant*  and  then  she  rose  hurriedly  to  her 
feet. 

;<  We'd  better  hit  the  trail  quick,"  she  said. 
;c  There's  a  big  storm  coming  up  over  the 
Divide." 

At  that  moment  only  a  native  could  have 
predicted  such  a  thing.  The  sky  was  still  clear 
and  there  was  little  wind.  But  presently,  over 
their  heads,  the  wind  began  to  sing;  across 
the  desert  the  dust  rose  in  little  eddying  col 
umns. 

Jacinta,  who  was  riding  beside  Fleming, 
the  better  to  serve  as  guide,  pointed  out  these 
dancing  columns. 

"  There's  going  to  be  a  big  sand  storm," 
she  commented  briefly. 

In  half  an  hour  they  were  feeling  the  full 
force  of  her  prophecy.  They  had  made  per 
haps  fifteen  miles  to  the  north  when  Fleming 
stopped  the  car  and  insisted  on  Jacinta  retir 
ing  into  the  tonneau.  In  the  last  quarter  of 
an  hour  the  wind  had  risen  to  an  incredible 
gale;  the  noise  of  it  was  like  a  storm  at  sea. 
It  scooped  up  the  fine  alkali  dust  and  sand 

116 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

from  the  desert,  scattering  it  broadcast.  It 
filled  the  air  till  the  car  moved  in  a  yellow 
twilight;  their  faces  were  stung  by  the  pelt 
ing  of  the  sand  as  if  by  fine  whiplashes.  In 
spite  of  goggles  it  became  at  last  an  almost 
unbearable  agony  to  keep  their  eyes  open. 

For  a  few  miles  Fleming  kept  grimly  at 
the  steering  wheel.  By  shielding  his  face 
with  one  arm  he  was  able  to  keep  going, 
though  it  had  become  impossible  to  see  more 
than  the  car's  length  ahead  in  that  maelstrom 
of  flying  sand.  When  the  pain  of  the  sting 
ing  particles  became  unendurable,  he  gave  the 
wheel  to  Johnston  and  retired  to  catch  his 
breath  under  a  tarpaulin. 

Even  with  his  head  thus  muffled  he  could 
hear  the  increased  roar  of  the  wind.  Pres 
ently  he  looked  out,  to  find  that  the  twilight 
had  given  place  to  a  tumultuous  night,  through 
which  they  labored  like  a  bark  in  a  heavy  sea. 
In  the  uproar  he  had  to  put  his  head  close  to 
Johnston's  to  make  him  hear.  At  that  mo 
ment  the  storm  seemed  to  reach  its  climax  of 
fury. 

With  one  accord  Fleming  and  Johnston 
retired  under  the  car,  where  they  lay,  par 
tially  sheltered,  digging  the  sand  from  their 
eyes. 

117 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

As  they  lay  there  Fleming  could  see  the 
sand  columns  rising  from  the  ground,  wheel 
ing,  advancing  like  furious  battalions,  then 
springing  into  the  air,  to  be  dispersed  as  snow 
is  driven  before  the  wind.  But  very  shortly 
his  view  was  cut  off  by  a  drift  of  sand  which 
was  steadily,  inch  by  inch,  piling  itself  against 
the  car.  In  an  hour  they  would  be  completely 
buried  where  they  lay;  and  in  three,  the  car 
itself  would  be  engulfed. 

Fleming  crawled  out  from  their  shelter,  and 
Johnston  followed.  Armed  with  the  shovel 
and  a  tin  pail  they  fell  to  work  at  the  drifts 
which  already  were  piling  up  to  the  body  of 
the  car.  In  spite  of  their  remonstrance  Ja- 
cinta  also  appeared  from  her  retreat  in  the 
tonneau  and  fell  to  work  on  the  drifts  with 
the  frying  pan. 

When  he  once  more  took  the  steering  wheel, 
Fleming's  face  was  set.  He  had  made  up  his 
mind  that  if  any  human  being  could  do  it, 
he  would  keep  the  car  going.  For  an  hour 
they  rode  in  silence.  For  Fleming  there  was 
one  comparatively  bright  spot  in  the  general 
gloom  of  his  outlook;  his  pet  sand-tires  were 
proving  all  that  he  had  claimed  for  them. 
Without  them  the  car  could  not  have  made 
a  rod  in  that  welter  of  sand.  He  turned  over 

118 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

in  his  mind  the  advertisement  he  would  work 
up  for  his  sand-tires  when  he  got  back  to  the 
factory ;  and  then  the  reflection  smote  him  that 
his  share  in  that  factory  was  being  imperiled 
at  the  rate  of  twenty  miles  an  hour — the  time 
Vannuccini  was  probably  making  at  that  mo 
ment  toward  the  setting  sun.  He  bent  des 
perately  over  the  steering  wheel.  The  car 
made  a  short  spurt  over  a  spot  swept  clean 
by  the  wind;  for  an  instant  he  saw  a  deeper 
line  of  darkness  amidst  the  swirl  of  the  sand; 
then  just  behind  him  Jacinta  seized  his  shoul 
der  and  screamed. 

The  next  instant  the  front  of  the  car 
lurched  downward  sickeningly;  Fleming  was 
hurled  across  the  steering  wheel ;  and  the  earth 
seemed  flying  up  to  met  him.  He  was  con 
scious  of  a  yell  from  Johnston — and  then  the 
car  dropped,  dropped,  through  a  nightmare 
of  darkness  at  the  bottom  of  which  some 
thing  hit  him  a  violent  blow.  He  knew  one 
second  of  excruciating  pain;  and  then  he 
seemed  to  plunge  again  into  abysmal  depths. 


119 


CHAPTER   XI 

OH,   I  can't   do   it!"  the   girl  cried. 
"Couldn't  you  do  it?     It  isn't  hard 
— you  just  give  it  a  sharp  pull,  until 
you  feel  the  bone  slip  into  place- 
She  stopped  with  a  shudder  and  looked  at 
Sid  Johnston.     In  the  light  from  the  fire  Sid 
was  of  a  delicate  saffron,  and  plainly  in  an 
awful  state  of  funk. 

"My  Gawd!"  he  groaned,  "I  couldn't  set 
a  chicken's  leg.  You'll  have  to  do  it,  Jacinta. 
Look  at  my  hand  shake." 

The  girl's  face  paled.  She  straightened  up 
from  her  crouching  position  over  the  fire  and 
walked  around  it  to  where  Fleming  lay 
stretched  on  the  cushions  of  the  car.  There 
were  beads  of  perspiration  on  his  forehead  in 
spite  of  the  chill  of  early  morning,  and  his 
eyes  were  bright  with  fever.  One  arm  lay 
oddly  outstretched  on  the  cushions.  The  girl 
winced  as  she  looked  at  it. 

"  It's  got  to  be  done,"  she  said  to  herself. 
She  had  once  seen  two  cow-punchers  set  a  dis 
located  shoulder,  but  it  was  another  thing  to 
do  it  herself.  She  felt  herself  getting  sick 

120 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

and  dizzy,  and  she  looked  a  last  appeal  at  Sid. 
He  had  disappeared  into  the  darkness;  she 
could  hear  him  swearing  nervously  behind  a 
rock  at  the  other  end  of  the  gulley.  She  gently 
put  aside  the  coat  and  shirt  they  had  slit  two 
hours  before  when  they  first  examined  Flem 
ing's  injury.  The  shoulder  was  becoming  in 
flamed.  Fleming  had  sunk  into  a  painful 
doze. 

"It's  got  to  be  done,"  she  said  again,  and 
called  Sid.  "  Put  your  knee  there,  under  the 
arm,"  she  commanded.  "Now  hold  his  other 
shoulder  down,  hard;  don't  let  him  move." 

IVery  gently,  but  with  hands  as  firm  as  steel, 
she  moved  the  arm  until  she  felt  the  bone  slip 
back  into  its  socket,  then  she  stood  up,  trem 
bling.  But  her  surgery  had  been  effective; 
when  they  brought  Fleming  back  to  conscious 
ness  he  no  longer  raved  of  disasters  and  a  lost 
race,  but  demanded  to  know  where  he  was  and 
what  had  happened. 

"  You're  at  the  bottom  of  a  fifteen-foot  ar- 
royo,"  Jacinta  informed  him.  "And  you're 
to  keep  still,  and  don't  talk." 

Fleming  shut  his  eyes ;  he  was  afraid  to  ask 
about  the  car.  At  last  he  looked  at  Johnston, 
who  knelt  on  the  ground  beside  him. 

"  Is  it  all  up  with  us,  Sid?"  he  whispered. 
121 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

A  grin  swept  over  Johnston's  anxious  face. 
"Oh,  Lord,  no!  "he  said. 

'  You  never  saw  the  beat  of  that  car  for 
standing  a  bruising,  Mr.  Fleming.  Broke  off 
one  lamp  and  smashed  a  mudguard  and  run 
ning  board;  snapped  the  truss  rod,  knocked 
the  steering  gear  a  point  or  two  to  larboard, 
and  ripped  off  a  tire — but  otherwise  she's  all 
righto!  I'm  going  to  get  to  work  at  her  just 
as  soon  as  it's  light;  don't  you  worry." 

"  But,  Sid — what's  the  matter  with  my 
shoulder? " 

Jacinta  appeared  at  that  moment  and 
begged  him  not  to  talk.  He  was  going  to 
have  some  hot  coffee  and  then  he  was  to  rest 
so  that  he  would  have  strength  to  be  moved. 
An  inviting  program!  Fleming  turned  his 
face  to  the  big  boulder  at  the  foot  of  which 
he  lay  and  his  heart  was  like  lead  within  him. 
His  shoulder  was  one  burning  ache;  and  his 
head  was  exceedingly  queer.  He  heard  Jacinta 
and  Sid  talking  as  they  prepared  their  break 
fast  ;  the  fire  of  dry  sage  brush  crackled  cheer 
fully  at  his  back,  and  presently  he  saw  the  red 
light  of  sunrise  creep  into  the  arroyo. 

Then  he  remembered  Vannuccini.  With  a 
feverish  effort  he  twisted  himself  onto  his  un 
injured  arm  and  half  arose.  He  saw  Jacinta 

122 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

run  toward  him.  Her  arm  about  him  was  the 
last  thing  he  remembered  before  he  plunged 
once  more  into  the  depths  of  unconscious 
ness. 

After  an  anxious  conference  it  was  decided 
that  Fleming  should  be  got  to  the  Myricks' 
as  soon  as  possible.  As  morning  dawned,  Ja- 
cinta  was  able  to  get  her  bearings,  and  she 
declared  they  were  not  more  than  five  miles 
from  the  sheep-wagons.  While  she  packed  up 
the  cooking  outfit  and  looked  after  Fleming, 
Sid  had  been  working  at  the  car  to  such  good 
effect  that  about  noon  he  announced  they  could 
go  on.  At  the  lower  end  of  the  arroyo  he  was 
able  to  make  an  ascent  to  the  level  of  the 
desert;  between  them  they  managed  to  get 
Fleming  into  the  car;  and  driving  very  care 
fully  they  made  out,  an  hour  later,  the  first 
foothills  of  the  Divide. 

A  morning  of  sunshine  and  breeze  had  suc 
ceeded  the  tempestuous  evening;  presently 
they  saw  a  grayish  blur,  like  a  cloud  shadow, 
drifting  with  a  movement  almost  impercepti 
ble  across  the  hills.  It  was  the  sheep,  three 
thousand  of  them,  grazing  slowly  northward. 
Two  miles  farther  and  the  white  canvas  of 
the  sheep-wagons  gleamed  out  in  a  snug  fold 
of  the  hills. 

123 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

Living  in  a  sheep-wagon  breeds  the  laconic 
habit  of  a  lighthouse  keeper.  The  Myricks 
said  little  and  asked  no  questions,  but  their 
hospitality  was  of  the  very  best  brand.  They 
bore  Fleming  into  the  "  bedroom  "  of  the  sec 
ond  wagon  with  an  instant  kindness  that  won 
his  heart,  and  then  Mrs.  Myrick  proceeded  to 
cook  them  a  dinner  that  lived  in  Sid  Johns 
ton's  memory  for  days  to  come. 

It  was  Mrs.  Myrick's  opinion  that  Fleming 
ought  to  have  a  doctor.  As  far  as  they  could 
tell,  the  shoulder  had  been  set  well  enough; 
but  there  was  a  mounting  fever,  and  Fleming 
was  continually  dropping  off  into  a  state  of 
semi-consciousness,  in  which  he  talked  wildly 
of  the  race  and  begged  them  to  start  on  at 
once. 

"  There's  Doc  Chanler  at  Rock  Springs," 
said  Jacinta.  But  the  Myricks  looked  at  each 
other  dubiously. 

*  The  fellers  on  Petersen's  ranch  are  lay  in' 
fer  him,"  said  Myrick.  "  I  dunno  whether 
he'll  dast  to  come  up  into  these  parts  er  not. 
'Count  of  the  shindig  around  Seaton's  Pass," 
he  added.  Jacinta  evidently  understood  the 
reference. 

"  He'll  come,"  she  said  decidedly.  "Who'll 
go  for  him?" 

124 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

She  looked  at  Johnston.  Sid  tried  to  appear 
cheerful. 

"How  many  blocks  is  it?"  he  asked. 

:<  Thirty  miles  from  here  to  Point  of 
Rocks,"  replied  Jacinta. 

"  If  you  go  straight,"  added  the  sheepman. 

Sid  was  of  the  opinion  that  alone  he  would 
be  hopelessly  lost  inside  of  five  miles;  it  was 
clear  that  he  must  have  a  guide.  Myrick  him 
self  could  not  go;  Mrs.  Myrick  did  not  know 
the  trail  through  the  foothills;  there  was  only 
Jacinta  left. 

Her  eyes  widened  with  dismay  as  she  took 
in  the  situation.  Point  of  Rocks  meant  for 
her  a  return  to  a  dangerous  locality.  Some 
where  in  the  vicinity  raged  the  dreaded  aunt 
and  disappointed  bridegroom.  But  here,  un 
der  her  eyes,  lay  Fleming,  suffering  and  in 
need  of  help ;  and  in  her  heart  was  the  memory 
of  a  certain  look  of  pity  and  kindness  he  had 
given  her.  Jerry  was  not  to  know  till  after 
ward  the  lively  part  in  his  affairs  his  uncon 
scious  tenderness  toward  the  little  runaway 
bride  was  to  play.  He  lay  just  now  in  a 
feverish  sleep.  Jacinta  looked  once  at  his 
flushed  face  and  then  she  said: 

;'  We'd  better  hit  the  trail  if  we're  to  get 
back  here  to-night." 

125 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

Afterwards,  Sid  Johnston  was  able  to  de 
scribe  his  run  for  the  doctor  with  a  spirit  that 
would  have  done  credit  to  the  ride  of  Paul 
Revere.  But  at  the  time  his  heart  was  as 
water  within  him.  Bereft  of  Fleming's 
knowledge  and  resource,  the  mechanic  devel 
oped  a  strange  sort  of  a  stage  fright.  In  these 
desolate  and  forbidding  wastes  objects  lose 
their  perspective  and  become  after  a  time  hallu 
cinatory.  Twice  that  afternoon  Johnston 
threw  out  the  clutch  and  brought  the  car  to  a 
standstill  because  of  what  he  supposed  to  be  a 
dog  or  a  coyote  in  the  way.  When  he  had 
brushed  his  hand  over  his  eyes,  the  thing  dis 
appeared  and  only  the  undulating  sand  with 
its  patches  of  saltsage  or  clumps  of  grease- 
wood  stretched  before  him.  At  his  right  ran 
the  sandhills,  some  of  them  fantastically 
shaped  as  if  molded  by  the  gigantic  forces 
of  the  upper  air.  Once  they  ran  for  miles  at 
the  edge  of  an  alkali  "flat" — the  dry  bed  of 
some  prehistoric  lake,  in  the  caked  alkaline 
dust  of  which  no  living  thing  can  exist.  And 
always  about  them  were  the  dead  silences  of 
the  desert. 

Jacinta,  who  knew  every  fold  of  the  foot 
hills,  every  butte  and  basin  between  the  sheep 
country  and  Point  of  Rocks,  was  an  excellent 

126 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

guide.  She  used  her  knowledge  so  skillfully 
that  three  hours  after  they  left  the  sheep- 
wagons  they  saw  a  thin  line  of  smoke  on  the 
eastern  horizon.  It  was  a  westward-bound 
passenger  train  on  the  Union  Pacific;  and  five 
minutes  later  they  sighted  the  half  dozen 
houses  which  is  Point  of  Rocks. 

It  was  decided  on  account  of  Jacinta's  shy 
ness  about  being  seen  in  "  town "  that  she 
should  wait  in  the  car  a  short  distance  east  of 
the  station  while  Johnston  went  on  to  the  doc 
tor's  house.  When  she  heard  the  incoming 
train  she  hid  behind  the  car,  making  herself 
small  on  the  off  running  board.  Thus  she  was 
not  aware  that  the  automobile,  a  conspicuous 
object  amidst  the  sand  and  sage  brush,  was 
arousing  considerable  interest  among  the  pas 
sengers  at  the  windows  of  the  last  Pullman. 

As  the  train  stopped  to  take  on  water  at 
the  tank  east  of  the  station  a  very  pretty  girl 
sat  alone  on  the  observation  platform  of  the 
last  Pullman.  Her  position  brought  the  lonely 
blue  motor  in  a  direct  line  with  her  preoccu 
pied  gaze.  She  looked  at  it  casually,  once. 
Then  she  rose  to  her  feet  and  stared ;  then  she 
opened  the  door  of  the  vestibule  swiftly,  and 
ran  across  the  intervening  stretch  of  sand  to 
wards  the  motor  car. 

127 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

The  next  instant,  without  a  note  of  warning 
or  farewell,  the  train  glided  silently  away  from 
the  water  tank,  swept  through  Point  of  Rocks 
and  became  a  lesson  in  perspective  across  the 
desert.  No  one  heard  the  startled  cry  of  the 
pretty  girl  in  gray  except  an  equally  pretty 
girl  in  brown  corduroy  and  leather  who  started 
up  from  the  opposite  side  of  the  car  and  said : 

"Who  are  you?" 


128 


CHAPTER  XII 

ON  the  day  when  Fleming  prepared  for 
his  run  across  the  Wyoming  desert 
Betty  and  her  father  had  arrived  in 
Hanna,  thirty  miles  east.  Their  presence 
there  was  a  tribute  to  Betty's  power  of  in 
veiglement.  She  had  begun  by  exhibiting  a 
sudden  enthusiastic  curiosity  concerning  her 
father's  mining  interests  in  Wyoming.  Then, 
when  he  remained  unfired  by  her  zeal,  she  had 
taxed  him  with  a  reprehensible  lack  of  business 
spirit.  At  last  one  morning  Hiram  D.  Al 
bright  had  looked  across  the  table  at  his  Betty, 
with  an  expression  that  started  out  to  be  severe 
and  was  spoilt  by  a  chuckle. 

"I  never  saw  your  beat  for  hanging  onto 
an  idea,  Betty! "  he  had  said.  "  If  you'll  give 
me  a  rest  on  the  subject  of  mines  I'll  buy  two 
tickets  to  Portland  to-morrow." 

Thereupon  she  had  run  around  the  table 
and  hugged  him  ecstatically. 

"  There's  no  sense  in  it,  though,"  he  had 
added,  trying  not  to  look  as  if  he  liked  being 
managed  by  Betty.  "  I  don't  know  why  a  girl 

129 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

should  take  so  much  interest  in  an  auto  race, 
any  way.  When  I  was  young,  girls " 

But  as  before  in  their  arguments  he  had 
never  got  beyond  this  point,  for  Betty  always 
put  her  pretty  hand  over  his  mouth  and 
stopped  him.  She  had  for  some  mysterious, 
girl's  reason  set  her  heart  on  being  in  Port 
land  for  the  end  of  the  transcontinental  race, 
and,  being  her  father's  "one  fair  daughter," 
she  had,  as  usual,  had  her  way. 

They  were  in  Hanna  two  days.  Betty's 
father  said  that  if  he  had  been  dragged  out 
there  on  a  pretense  of  looking  at  coal  mines, 
he  was  going  to  do  it;  and  Betty  could  make 
the  best  of  Hanna's  one  hotel  for  a  couple  of 
days. 

The  first  day  she  had  found  Hanna  rather 
diverting;  but  the  second  dragged.  When  the 
Eastern  mail  came  in  at  noon,  her  father  had 
not  got  back  from  Mine  No.  7 ;  but  she  found 
distraction  in  the  letters  that  had  followed 
them  from  New  York.  On  the  heels  of  this 
post  came  a  telegram,  also  forwarded,  which 
Betty  read  and  turned  scarlet  over. 

It  was  a  telegram  from  Vannuccini,  dated 
Monday  (this  was  Tuesday)  and  sent  to  her 
in  New  York  from  Rock  Springs,  Wyoming. 

When  she  had  finished  it  she  sat  for  several 

130 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

minutes  staring  at  it.  In  all  her  unclouded  life 
Betty  Albright  had  never  known  so  many  con 
flicting  emotions.  She  was  deeply  hurt;  she 
was  mortified;  and  she  told  herself  she  was 
dreadfully  angry.  But  there  was  another  ex 
pression  in  her  eyes.  It  was  as  if  a  shock  had 
revealed  to  her  an  emotion  she  had  not  dreamed 
herself  capable  of  harboring.  For  the  first 
time  in  her  favored  and  happy  existence  Betty 
Albright  was  jealous. 

When  Vannuccini  composed  his  telegram 
to  Miss  Albright  he  had  not  the  least  idea  that 
it  might  prove  for  him  a  boomerang.  He  had 
obeyed  a  primitive  law  of  cunning  when  he 
inserted  a  cleverly  casual  sentence  in  that  tele 
gram  to  the  effect  that  Fleming  had  gone  off 
somewhere  into  the  wilds  with  a  beautiful 
Spanish  girl! 

He  had  not  stated  it  so  badly  as  that.  His 
lengthy  wire  was  effective  more  by  what  it  left 
out  than  by  what  it  revealed.  But  in  spite  of 
its  cunning  it  worked  for  the  absolute  down 
fall  of  its  author.  Betty  Albright  was  too 
honest  herself  to  tolerate  treachery  for  an  in 
stant  ;  but,  alas,  she  rose  to  the  bait !  That  was 
where  she  showed  herself  at  one  with  the 
Eternal  Feminine.  She  would  never  forgive 
Vannuccini  for  his  tale-bearing;  but  to  the 

131 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

tale  itself  she  paid  a  most  inconsistent  atten 
tion.  It  came  as  a  positive  shock  to  find  that 
she  could  be  so  stung  by  anything  Jerry  Flem 
ing  might  do.  Ever  since  they  were  boy  and 
girl  she  had  accepted  Jerry's  unswerving  loy 
alty  as  a  matter  of  course.  By  all  his  boyish 
love-making  she  had  never  been  stirred;  but 
now  at  this  hint  of  Vannuccini's  she  found  her 
self  regarding  Fleming  with  eyes,  as  it  were, 
wide  open.  Had  he  become  more  interesting? 

The  hot  tears  of  rage  and  shame  sprang 
to  her  eyes.  But  for  whom  were  they?  Her 
self,  or  Vannuccini,  or  Fleming?  She  herself 
could  not  have  told,  but  she  knew  that  some 
instinct  moved  her  to  tear  Vannuccini's  tele 
gram  into  fragments  as  she  heard  her  father's 
voice  below.  Whatever  she  herself  might  think 
of  the  affair,  it  would  be  unbearable  to  have 
her  father  believe  that  Jerry  had  run  away 
with  a  pretty  Spaniard.  If  the  story  was 
true,  then  she  would  have  to  own  that  her 
father's  lack  of  confidence  in  Jerry  was  justi 
fied;  but  she  meant  to  put  off  the  humiliating 
moment  as  long  as  possible. 

That  afternoon  they  had  set  out  once  more 
on  their  westward  way.  An  abstracted  silence 
fell  on  Betty.  She  sat  staring  out  at  the 
monotonous  flying  miles  of  desert  country; 

132 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

her  father  retired  under  a  large  white  hand 
kerchief  and  went  to  sleep.  Presently  she 
slipped  out  to  the  observation  platform  of 
their  coach.  She  was  quite  alone  on  the  plat 
form,  and  she  selected  a  comfortable  chair 
with  the  determination  to  think  of  nothing  but 
"  The  Ebb-tide,"  which  she  was  reading  for 
the  second  time.  She  told  herself  there  was 
probably  not  a  word  of  truth  in  that  story  of 
Jerry  and  the  pretty  senorita  .  .  .  anyway, 
she  wouldn't  think  about  it  .  -.  ,.  of  course, 
she  had  always  known  that  Jerry  was  im 
petuous  .  .  . 

Just  here  she  was  aware  that  the  train  had 
come  to  a  standstill.  She  looked  out  across 
the  desert.  Then  she  sprang  to  her  feet  with 
an  exclamation  of  surprise.  She  recognized 
the  blue  car,  standing  apparently  deserted  out 
there  among  the  sage  brush.  The  train  had 
stopped  to  take  on  water ;  there  would  be  time 
for  her  to  just  run  across  to  the  car  and  sur 
prise  Jerry.  Without  a  second  thought  she 
had  opened  the  door  of  the  vestibule  and  was 
speeding  toward  the  motor  car. 


133 


CHAPTER  XIII 

WHEN  Sid  Johnston  came  back 
from  his  quest  of  the  doctor  he 
advanced  around  the  Union  Pa 
cific  water  tanks  whistling  cheerfully,  a  pail 
of  water  in  one  hand  and  a  five -gallon  gas 
olene  tin  in  the  other.  When  he  was 
within  a  stone's  throw  of  the  car,  he  suddenly; 
set  down  his  burden  and  retired  behind  a 
clump  of  sage  brush,  where  he  doubled  up 
with  silent  mirth.  For  he  recognized  the  Only 
Girl  at  once;  and  in  spite  of  the  astonishing 
unexpectedness  of  her  appearance  there  he 
grasped  in  part  the  nature  of  the  little  comedy 
before  him. 

The  Nero  held  the  center  of  the  stage. 
Standing  defiantly  on  the  right  running  board 
of  the  car  was  Jacinta;  and  facing  her  was 
Betty  Albright.  There  was  that  in  the  air 
which  made  Johnston  feel  backward  about  in 
truding.  Plainly  there  had  been  an  exchange 
of  "  Who  are  you's  ? "  The  girl  from  the  East 
looked  at  the  girl  from  the  Little  Snake,  and 
there  were  certain  undeniable  questions  in  her 

134 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

stare.  At  this  point  Johnston  came  out  from 
the  shelter  of  his  sage  brush  and  advanced  to 
ward  them.  Betty  came  to  meet  him. 

:'You  are  Sid  Johnston,  aren't  you?"  she 
said  with  a  smile  that  enrolled  him  under  her 
banner  at  once.  "I'm  afraid  I'm  left  on  your 
hands.  I  recognized  Mr.  Fleming's  car  from 
the  platform  of  the  train  and  I  thought  I  had 
plenty  of  time — to — where  is  Mr.  Fleming?" 

Sid  had  a  fatal  impulse  to  conceal  their  de 
tour  of  the  day  before,  which  made  him  stam 
mer  suspiciously  over  the  simple  statement  that 
Fleming  lay  thirty  miles  to  the  north  with  a 
dislocated  shoulder. 

"  A  dislocated  shoulder ! "  gasped  Betty. 
"  Has  he  had  a  doctor?" 

"  That's  what  we  came  down  here  for,"  said 
Sid.  "  Oh,  no,  no — he's  not  so  to  say  in  dan 
ger,  but  he's  off  his  head,  and  the  fever,  you 
see •" 

Betty  turned  pale.  "He  might  die!  It 
should  have  been  set  at  once " 

A  sound  from  Jacinta  made  them  turn  to 
look  at  her.  She  still  stood  on  the  running 
board  of  the  car,  a  small  Carmen,  with  hostil 
ity  in  her  beautiful  eyes. 

"  I  set  it ! "  she  said.  It  would  be  going  too 
far  to  say  that  Betty  wished  the  arm  had  never 

135 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

been  set;  but  she  was  quite  human.  A  wave 
of  conviction  overwhelmed  her  reason.  Van- 
nuccini  had  been  right!  It  was  really  too  bad 
of  Jerry !  And  after  what  he  had  said  to  her 
back  there  in  New  York  .  .  . 

"  We'll  have  to  hit  the  trail  lively,  if  we  get 
to  Myricks  before  dark,"  Jacinta  was  say 
ing.  ;'  The  doctor'll  be  there  before  we  are, 
for  there's  a  shorter  trail  through  the  foot 
hills." 

"  The  doctor's  going  up  on  horseback,"  Sid 
explained.  "  We  can  take  you  to  one  of  those 
houses  over  there,  Miss  Albright;  and  I'll  wire 
your  father  where  you  are,  if  you  say  so." 

He  looked  from  Jacinta  to  Betty.  Betty 
stared  at  the  converging  lines  of  steel  rails 
stretching  away  across  the  desert;  then  she 
stole  one  glance  at  Jacinta's  Castilian  pretti- 
ness  and  announced  that  she  did  not  care  to  be 
left  at  Point  of  Rocks — she  had  decided  it 
was  her  duty  to  go  along  and  nurse  poor 
Jerry ! 

Sid  stared  helplessly.  He  ventured  to  re 
mind  her  of  her  distracted  father.  Betty  ad 
mitted  that  there  was  a  difficulty;  but  after  a 
moment  of  frowning  thought  she  had  solved  it. 
There  was  an  operator  in  the  station  near  at 
hand.  They  would  send  a  wire  to  her  father, 

136 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

who  would  probably  not  miss  her  until  the 
train  reached  the  next  station — Rock  Springs. 
This  wire  would  be  handed  him  when  the  train 
stopped.  In  it  she  would  explain  fully;  she 
would  also  tell  him  to  await  her  at  Rock 
Springs.  To  guard  against  the  telegram's 
missing  him  a  similar  one  should  be  sent  to  the 
hotel  where  they  had  intended  spending  the 
day  while  Mr.  Albright  looked  after  mining 
affairs  in  the  vicinity. 

"Poor  Dad!"  Betty  could  not  help  smil 
ing.  "  He'll  be  wild  till  one  of  those  telegrams 
strikes  him.  He'll  abuse  everyone  dreadfully, 
from  the  porter  up ;  but  I  can't  help  it.  You 
don't  mind  taking  me  along,  do  you,  Mr. 
Johnston?" 

Poor  Sid  did  mind — and  he  didn't,  when 
Betty  smiled  like  that.  But  there  was  a  ter 
rible  moment  when  he  wondered  which  girl 
he  ought  to  help  to  a  seat  beside  the  driver. 
He  need  not  have  troubled  himself.  Betty  had 
recovered  her  aplomb.  With  quite  a  royal  air 
she  took  her  seat  in  front.  And  Jacinta,  with 
a  darkling  brow,  was  obliged  to  make  shift 
amidst  the  impedimenta  of  the  tonneau. 

•  •  •  •  • 

The  canvas-covered  sheep-wagons  gleamed 
through  a  velvety  dusk  when  Sid  drove  the 

137 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY, 

blue  car  around  the  last  fold  of  the  hills.  The 
doctor's  pony  was  hobbled  with  the  other 
horses  and  a  yellow  gleam  of  light  from  one  of 
the  wagons  showed  Mrs.  Myrick  deftly  ma 
nipulating  the  frying  pans. 

As  Betty  stepped  from  the  car  a  swift  sense 
of  constraint  seized  her.  All  through  that 
never-to-be-forgotten  drive  across  the  desert 
and  through  the  foothills  she  had  been  telling 
herself  that  she  came  from  a  sense  of  duty; 
but  she  could  not  blind  herself  to  a  less  worthy 
emotion  that  made  itself  felt  whenever  she 
looked  at  Jacinta.  She  despised  herself  for  it, 
but  the  feeling  was  there — and  it  grew  within 
her  as  Jacinta  glided  past  her  and  climbed 
within  the  tiny  door  of  the  nearest  wagon. 
She  stood  in  the  dark,  beside  the  packing  case 
that  served  as  doorstep,  and  heard  Fleming 
say: 

"Hello,  Jacinta — you're  an  all-right  girl!" 

She  waited  no  longer.  A  lantern  hung  from 
one  of  the  corner  uprights  and  in  its  light  she 
saw  Fleming  raise  himself  on  one  elbow  with 
a  look  on  his  face  as  if  he  had  seen  an  appari 
tion. 

"Betty!" 

"  Well,  Jerry!"  she  replied,  putting  a  cool 
hand  on  his  forehead. 

138 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

"Betty— dear!    It  isn't  you,  is  it?  " 

Betty  laughed.    "  It  certainly  is.    Now— 
with  professional  coolness,   "  you  are  to  lie 
down  again  and  I'll  explain." 

If  Betty's  eyes  had  not  been  clouded  she 
would  have  been  convinced  of  Jerry's  loyalty 
by  the  rapturous  happiness  in  his  face  as  he 
regarded  her.  But  circumstantial  evidence  has 
always  a  new  trick  up  its  sleeve.  As  she  seated 
herself  on  the  box  at  the  head  of  Jerry's  cot  a 
figure  stirred  in  the  dark  corner  and  crept  to 
ward  the  door. 

"Wait!"  Jerry  called.  "Jacinta,  come 
here.  Betty,  dear,  I  want  you  to  be  good 
friends  with  this  little  girl.  She's  the  real 
thing;  she's  got  more  courage  than  most  men, 
Betty." 

"  I  am  sure  she  has,"  said  Betty;  and,  man 
like,  Fleming  took  it  for  granted  that  Betty 
knew  the  entire  episode.  He  promptly  dis 
missed  Jacinta  and  her  story  from  his  mind. 
It  was  enough  for  him  that  Betty  sat  there, 
that  she  allowed  him  to  hold  her  hand  in  his 
free  one — though  with  a  detached  coolness  of 
which  he  was  quite  unconscious  in  the  happi 
ness  of  talking  to  her. 

That  night  Betty  slept  for  the  first  time 
with  only  canvas  between  her  and  the  sky. 

139 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

One  wagon  had  been  arranged  for  the  women ; 
and  she  could  see  through  the  doorway  the 
wonderful  Wyoming  night  sky.  The  stars 
hung  miraculously  near ;  out  in  the  foothills  a 
coyote  barked,  and  in  the  distance  another  an 
swered.  That  night  and  the  day  that  followed 
were  like  bits  of  a  dream  existence.  The 
limpid  clearness  of  the  air;  the  foothills  un 
dulating  away  endlessly;  the  afternoon  siesta 
in  the  shade  of  the  wagons — all  were  part  of 
an  experience  the  city-bred  girl  would  never 
forget. 

Fleming  was  much  improved  the  next  morn 
ing.  Betty's  coming,  he  declared,  was  better 
than  all  the  doctors  in  the  State.  He  would 
in  fact  have  started  on  their  way  again  at 
once  if  the  rest  of  his  party  had  not  refused 
to  hear  of  such  a  thing. 

"If  you  were  a  cowpunch,  Fleming,"  said 
the  doctor,  "  you'd  have  set  your  own  arm  and 
gone  on  rejoicing;  but  you've  got  too  much 
city  in  your  bones  to  take  liberties  with  a  dis 
location.  If  you  don't  fuss  yourself  into  an 
other  fever  over  this  race  you  think  you've  lost, 
you  can  go  on  to-morrow  afternoon.  I'll  see 
you  over  the  Divide  myself — though  I'm  about 
as  popular  as  a  skunk  at  a  picnic  west  of  the 
hills!  "  he  added,  with  a  grin  at  Myrick. 

140 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

Myrick  nodded.  "  Better  stay  this  side  the 
Divide,"  he  remarked. 

"Well,  I  tell  you,"  returned  the  doctor 
slowly,  "  when  trouble  is  looking  for  me  I 
want  to  go  out  to  meet  it — and  get  it  over  with 
—see?" 

Jacinta  looked  up  from  the  potatoes  she  was 
helping  Mrs.  Myrick  prepare  for  supper. 

"  Cal  Dean  and  the  outfit  from  Petersen's 
were  in  town  last  week,"  she  said.  "  They're 
sure  looking  for  you — so  they  said.  I  heard 
that  Cal  made  a  speech  in  Ben  Day's  place 
and  showed  off  the  Krag  bullet  hole  in  his 
arm— 

:e  The  army  Krag  makes  a  nice,  neat  hole," 
commented  the  doctor. 

"  How  did  the  gentleman  get  a  Krag  bullet 
hole  in  his  arm?"  asked  Betty,  who  had  been 
listening  with  her  chin  in  her  hand. 

The  doctor  laughed.  "That's  the  point  of 
the  story,  Miss  Albright.  If  the  authorities 
down  at  Cheyenne  knew  where  Cal  got  his 
bullet  hole  he'd  be  in  jail  along  with  five  of  his 
friends;  but  he's  too  slippery.'* 

"But  you  know?"  she  hinted. 

"  I  suspect,"  said  the  doctor.  "  You  see, 
Miss  Albright,  up  here  in  Sweetwater  there's 
the  sheep  side  and  the  cattle  side.  The  cattle- 

141 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

men  hate  sheep  like  poison.  If  you've  noticed 
a  hill  that  sheep  have  grazed  over  you'll  see 
that  they  have  eaten  everything  clean  to  the 
roots.  A  goat  could  scarcely  get  a  meal  off 
the  pasturage  a  flock  of  sheep  leave  behind. 
For  that  reason,  and  for  others  it's  no  use  go 
ing  into,  the  cattlemen  hate  to  see  sheep  com 
ing  into  the  country.  The  day  isn't  so  far  be 
hind  us  when  cattlemen  took  the  law  into  their 
own  hands  and  made  things  too  hot  for  any 
but  the  big  breeders.  But  that  state  of  things 
has  been  given  its  death  blow,  and  I  guess  I 
can  truthfully  claim  a  little  credit  for  giving 
the  law  a  leg  up  in  Sweetwater  County." 

"  And  is  that  why  Cal  Dean  is  looking  for 
you?"  persisted  Betty. 

The  doctor  interested  her  more  than  any  of 
the  Westerners  she  had  met.  He  was  lean 
and  dark,  with  the  deep  black  eyes  of  the  man 
who  would  go  to  the  stake  for  an  idea.  There 
had  been  a  certain  flash  of  grim  humor  in  his 
face  when  Myrick  advised  him  to  stay  east  of 
the  Divide  that  aroused  her  curiosity.  "  Is 
Cal  Dean  sheep  or  cattle?  "  she  asked. 

"  He's  just  a  cowpunch,  and  as  ornery  a 
specimen  as  any  ranch  in  Sweetwater  can 
boast.  But  he's  got  a  kind  of  fiery  eloquence 
that  always  gives  him  a  following  among  the 

142 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

riff-raff  of  the  ranches.  He  hates  me  on  ac 
count  of  a  little  help  I  gave  Jim  Morse  last 
month.  Jim  Morse  used  to  be  a  cattleman; 
but  failed  in  cattle  and  went  in  for  sheep.  He 
turned  four  thousand  of  them  onto  his  range 
one  week,  and  every  cattleman  for  200  miles 
around  was  his  enemy  from  that  time  on. 

"  One  morning  Jim  woke  up  to  find  800  of 
his  sheep  shot  and  a  good-sized  bunch  at  the 
bottom  of  a  canyon  with  their  necks  broke. 
This  happened  twice.  Of  course,  Jim  wasn't 
sitting  meekly  at  home  all  this  time ;  but  what 
could  he  do  ?  He  was  practically  single  handed. 
The  Mexican  'herders  will  run  at  sight  of 
a  cowpunch  with  a  gun,  and  Jim's  range  was 
so  big  he  couldn't  be  on  all  sides  of  it  at  once. 
Finally  one  day  he  came  down  to  town.  He 
dropped  in  at  my  place  and  I  could  see  he  was 
plumb  discouraged." 

'  Doc,'  he  says,  '  I'll  be  down  and  out  if 
I  can't  put  a  stop  to  this  thing  right  away. 
Two  hundred  more  gone  last  night ! ' 

"Well,  we  put  our  heads  together.  We 
kept  the  wires  hot  up  to  'Frisco  all  that  day. 
The  22nd  Cavalry  had  landed  in  town  from 
the  Philippines  the  day  before  and  it  gave  us 
an  idea.  Two  nights  later  Jim  and  I  rode  out 
over  the  range  with  a  couple  of  wagons — cov- 

143 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

ered  supply  wagons,  like  these,  Miss  Albright. 
We  had  calculated  just  right,  for  about  mid 
night  a  bunch  of  cowboys — the  scum  of  four 
ranches — rode  over  the  Divide,  drove  off  the 
Mexican  herders  and  opened  fire  on  the 
sheep." 

"They  began  killing  the  sheep?"  Betty 
gasped. 

"  Sure !  right  and  left,  waded  in  knee  deep 
among  the  woolly  things  and  shot  them  with 
both  hands." 

"  But  you  stopped  them!" 

The  doctor  grinned.  "  Well,  I  should  say 
so — with  a  half  dozen  army  Krags.  Say,  I 
never  saw  a  more  successful  surprise  party. 
When  our  men  stepped  out  of  those  sheep- 
wagons  and  began  winging  cowpunchers  at  a 
thousand  yards,  why  it  was  like  lightning  out 
of  a  blue  sky.  As  many  of  them  as  could  got 
away,  but  five  of  them  were  landed  in  a  Chey 
enne  jail,  and  there's  more  than  one  man  in 
Sweetwater  to-day  with  a  Krag  bullet  wound 
that  he's  hiding  or  boasting  about,  like  Cal 
Dean." 

The    doctor    rose    and    stretched   himself. 

'  You  mustn't  think  we're  a  lawless  lot  out 

here,  Miss  Albright,"  he  added.    "Wyoming 

is  a  Sunday  school  compared  with  what  it  used 

144 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

to  be;  but  in  every  community  there's  some 
such  loud  talker  as  Cal  Dean,  who  just  has  to 
run  amuck  once  in  awhile.  The  best  way  is 
to  walk  the  earth  as  if  they  weren't  on  it " 

"  And  keep  your  gun  handy,"  interposed 
the  sheepman,  who  had  silently  joined  them. 
Betty  felt  there  was  something  behind  the 
look  the  two  men  exchanged,  but  the  conversa 
tion  turned  to  horses  and  she  asked  no  more 
questions.  She  would  have  liked  to  ask  Ja- 
cinta  why  the  sheepman  had  warned  the  doc 
tor  not  to  cross  the  Divide,  but  Jacinta  had 
taken  a  leaf  from  her  own  book.  She  held  her 
self  silently  aloof,  helping  Mrs.  Myrick  and 
talking  only  to  the  doctor.  As  the  drowsy 
heat  of  the  day  passed  Betty  wondered  if  she 
had  not  allowed  herself  to  be  prejudiced  with 
out  cause.  She  was  contemplating  kinder  ad 
vances  toward  the  little  Wyoming  Carmen 
when  a  new  actor  made  his  entrance  on  the 
scene  and  she  found  a  fresh  barb  of  suspicion 
planted  in  her  heart. 

A  little  way  above  the  sheep-wagons  the 
trail  appears  around  the  corner  of  the  hills 
and  winds  down  a  steep  and  precarious  de 
scent.  Just  at  sunset  she  climbed  this  trail 
with  Sid  to  a  point  where  they  could  see  the 
sheep  grazing  toward  the  west.  On  their 

145 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

way  back  they  were  forced  to  press  close  to 
the  rocky  side  of  the  trail  to  allow  a  horseman 
to  pass  them.  He  reined  in  his  little  piebald 
broncho  as  he  saw  them,  and  Betty  guessed 
that  he  was  a  Mexican.  His  immense  sombrero 
cast  a  shade  over  his  dark  face  and  from  this 
shadow  he  looked  down  at  them  with  small, 
brilliant  black  eyes.  He  was  dressed  in  new 
clothes,  of  the  sort  Betty  had  never  seen  off 
the  stage  before.  He  swept  off  his  new  and 
elegant  sombrero  to  her  and  showed  his  white 
teeth  in  a  smile  as  he  passed. 

They  followed  him  down  the  trail.  Betty 
could  see,  as  his  horse  swerved  to  one  side, 
that  there  were  only  two  people  in  sight  as 
they  approached  the  wagons;  and  they  were 
Jacinta  and  Fleming.  They  sat  on  an  over 
turned  soap  box  laughing  together  over  an 
ancient  copy  of  "  Puck."  When  the  Mexi 
can's  glance  lighted  upon  this  peaceful  scene, 
he  pulled  up  his  horse  and  sat  for  a  moment, 
rigidly  staring.  Then  with  a  muttered  impre 
cation  he  rode  toward  them,  flung  himself 
dramatically  from  his  horse  and  poured  out  a 
torrent  of  Spanish. 

Betty  saw  Jacinta  spring  to  her  feet,  her 
face  white,  but  her  eyes  brilliant  with  anger. 

146 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

'You — Miguel!"  she  cried,  and  her  hand 
flew  to  a  little  revolver  she  wore  at  her  belt. 
Fleming  put  a  protecting  hand  on  her  arm. 
Betty  could  not  hear  what  he  said  to  her,  but 
she  saw  Jacinta  make  an  imperative  gesture 
toward  a  distant  rock  which  jutted  out  above 
the  trail.  She  turned  and  walked  toward  it, 
and  the  Mexican  followed.  Their  interview  was 
short,  and  as  they  could  all  see,  dramatically 
stormy.  Finally  the  Mexican,  with  a  sneering 
laugh,  flung  an  arm  in  Fleming's  direction  and 
Betty  saw  Jacinta  rise  with  her  haughtiest  air. 
She  spoke  rapidly  for  an  instant  and  then 
she  turned  on  her  heel  and  left  Miguel  biting 
his  nails. 

A  few  minutes  later  the  sheepman  called 
them  all  to  supper.  Miguel,  summoning  an 
air  of  suave  good-humor,  joined  them.  He 
seemed  determined  to  overlook  whatever  dif 
ferences  he  and  Jacinta  might  have  had;  and 
he  was  especially  ingratiating  in  his  manner 
to  Fleming — an  attention  Fleming  received 
with  amused  carelessness. 

Betty  watched  Miguel  ride  off  after  the 
meal  with  a  parting  sweep  of  his  sombrero, 
and  then,  regardless  of  Fleming's  look  of  pro 
test,  she  attached  herself  to  Mrs.  Myrick. 

147 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

That  night  Fleming,  baffled  and  disheart 
ened,  asked  himself  as  he  dropped  to  sleep, 
why  a  man  might  master  the  most  intricate 
motor  problem  and  invariably  short-circuit 
when  he  tried  to  understand  a  girl! 


148 


CHAPTER  XIV 

A  the  bend  in  the  trail  Sid  stopped  the 
car  and  they  all  turned  back  for  a 
last  look  at  the  sheep-wagons,  their 
canvas  tops  shining  dazzling  white  in  the 
afternoon  sunlight.  Mrs.  Myrick  waved  her 
hand  from  the  door  of  one,  while  leaning 
against  the  tongue  of  the  other  stood  a  solitary 
figure.  It  was  Jacinta,  erect  and  defiant, 
scorning  to  wipe  away,  as  long  as  they  were 
looking  back,  the  hot  tears  that  stood  in  her 
eyes. 

Just  before  noon  that  morning,  Miguel  had 
ridden  into  camp  on  a  fresh  mount,  his  new 
clothes  showing  signs  of  hard  riding,  but  his 
smile  radiating  friendliness  on  everyone 
around  him.  He  had  suggested  their  crossing 
the  Divide  through  Red  Rock  Pass,  at  certain 
seasons  of  the  year  the  bed  of  a  raging  tor 
rent,  but  which  was  just  then  an  easily  trav 
eled  cut  through  the  mountains.  As  he  pointed 
out,  this  route  would  mean  a  winding  climb 
of  three  hours,  but  would  save  them  twenty 
miles  in  the  end.  Moreover,  he  offered  to 

149 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

guide  them  to  the  other  end  of  the  pass.  Flem 
ing,  who  had  to  consider  not  only  his  time  but 
his  gasolene,  figured  that  the  additional  fuel 
used  in  hill  climbing  would  be  saved  in  the 
descent,  and  was  quite  willing  to  try  Red 
Rock  Pass.  The  doctor,  who  knew  very  little 
of  that  section,  also  agreed  to  the  Mexican's 
proposal.  It  was  only  the  sheepman  who 
hinted  that  the  plan  might  not  be  entirely  de 
sirable.  He  drew  the  doctor  one  side  and  sug 
gested  that  he  leave  the  motor  party  and  keep 
to  the  eastern  side  of  the  Divide. 

"  Red  Rock  Pass,"  said  the  sheepman,  "  is 
a  mighty  good  place  for  an  ambush." 

The  doctor  laughed.  "What  of  it?  Cal 
Dean  and  his  outfit  think  I'm  in  Rock 
Springs." 

"  Mebbe ;  but  how  do  you  know  where 
Miguel  rode  last  night?  " 

The  doctor  stared.  "  Oh,  come,  Myrick," 
he  said,  "your  imagination's  working  over 
time.  I  never  saw  the  greaser  before — he's 
got  nothing  against  me ! " 

'  You  never  can  tell  anything  about  a 
greaser,"  replied  Myrick  darkly.  "  And  this 
automobile  outfit — what  if  there  should  be 
trouble,  and  they  should  get  in  the  way?" 

"They  won't.     They've  got  tourist  fresh 

150 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

branded  on  'em,  and  not  even  Cal  Dean  is  fool 
enough  to  go  'round  shooting  up  tourists." 

And  the  sheepman  said  no  more.  With 
Miguel  as  guide  they  had  set  out,  and  at  four 
that  afternoon  they  reached  the  highest  point 
of  the  Divide.  To  Betty  the  climb  had  been 
a  succession  of  startling  sensations.  For  two 
hours  they  had  wound  around  the  base  of 
sandstone  cliffs,  hugging  the  rock,  with  the 
mountain  dropping  away  sheer  below  them  to 
terrifying  depths  of  twilit  obscurity.  She  had 
clinched  her  hands  and  watched  with  a  fas 
cinated  terror  the  nimble  feet  of  Miguel's 
broncho  as  it  picked  its  way  ahead  of  them, 
with  what  appeared  a  perverse  intention  to  get 
as  near  the  edge  as  possible  without  disaster. 
Miguel  himself  seemed  to  regard  the  trail  as  a 
spacious  boulevard.  He  sang  a  gay  little  song 
under  his  breath  and  occasionally  flashed  his 
white  teeth  in  a  smile  at  her  apprehensive  face. 
The  doctor  rode  with  the  easy  slouch  of  the 
man  who  spends  his  days  in  the  saddle. 

In  the  car  there  was  little  conversation,  for 
the  business  of  making  the  best  of  the  narrow 
margin  of  daylight  left  them  was  sufficiently 
engrossing  to  absorb  their  thoughts.  Occa 
sionally  in  the  windings  of  the  trail  they  had  a 
glimpse  of  the  plain  below  through  which  the 

151 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

tributaries  of  the  Big  Sandy  made  ribbons 
of  faint  green  amidst  the  dun-colored  land 
scape. 

A  half -hour  later  they  plunged  into  the 
twilight  of  Red  Rock  Pass.  On  both  sides  of 
them  the  red  sandstone  bluffs  towered  until 
the  sky  above  was  a  mere  ribbon  of  blue.  From 
the  formation  of  the  rocks  it  was  plain  that 
some  mighty  forgotten  river  had  once  forced 
its  way  through  this  lonely  pass.  Lizards  as 
brilliant  as  jewels  darted  from  their  path;  a 
kind  of  waiting  and  listening  silence  hung  in 
the  air. 

Suddenly  Miguel,  who  led  the  way,  reined 
in  his  horse  with  an  exclamation.  Squarely 
across  their  path  lay  a  huge  boulder.  There 
was  barely  room  for  a  horse  to  squeeze  around 
it,  and  the  progress  of  the  car  was  effectually 
blocked. 

The  doctor  dismounted  and  scanned  the 
boulder,  whose  path  down  the  side  of  the 
canyon  was  plainly  marked. 

"  Must  have  fallen  very  lately,"  he  said, 
picking  up  a  bit  of  fresh  clay  which  still  clung 
to  the  huge  rock. 

Miguel  declared  he  was  desolated.  He 
himself  had  ridden  that  way  but  yesterday — 
and  the  trail  was  clear. 

152 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

Fleming's  face  took  on  its  look  of  dogged 
patience  once  more. 

"We've  got  to  get  the  car  over,"  he  said 
simply;  and  helped  Betty  to  a  seat  on  a  con 
venient  rock. 

In  the  next  hour  and  a  half  Betty  witnessed 
a  little  exhibition  of  ingenuity,  patience  and 
hard  work  that  opened  her  eyes  to  some  of  the 
practical  difficulties  Fleming  and  his  car  had 
already  overcome. 

The  boulder  was  too  large  for  the  combined 
strength  of  the  party  to  move,  and  as  it  was 
impossible  to  turn  the  car  in  that  narrow  gorge 
a  runway  had  to  be  built  up  over  the  rock  it 
self.  Under  Fleming's  direction  a  mass  of 
driftwood  from  the  last  spring  freshet  was 
piled  up  against  the  rock  with  such  loose  stones 
and  earth  as  could  be  collected.  After  an 
hour's  hard  work  it  seemed  as  if  the  car  might 
be  run  up  and  over  the  boulder.  Sid  took  the 
wheel  and,  backing  the  car  a  few  feet,  took  a 
flying  start  at  the  newly  made  road  bed. 

The  next  instant  the  unfortunate  Nero  was 
hanging,  impaled,  so  to  speak,  on  the  big  rock, 
stuck  there  on  its  own  flywheel !  Fleming  saw 
at  once  what  had  happened.  When  the  front 
wheels  had  topped  the  rock  and  began  the  de 
scent  the  rear  wheels  were  still  ascending. 

153 


Their  traction  at  once  commenced  to  scatter 
the  newly  made  road  bed,  and  immediately  the 
flywheel  settled  down  on  the  boulder  itself, 
stopping  the  motor  instantaneously. 

With  dark  forebodings  of  a  broken  crank 
shaft  Sid  tore  up  the  flooring  to  ta"ke  a  look 
at  his  beloved  engine.  A  careful  investigation 
failed  to  reveal  any  serious  damage  done,  and 
Fleming  drew  a  long  breath  of  relief.  The 
rear  wheels  were  carefully  jacked  up,  rocks 
and  driftwood  were  piled  under  the  tires  and 
at  last  after  infinite  difficulty  the  car  was 
coaxed  to  make  the  descent  without  further 
trouble. 

In  spite  of  their  utmost  efforts  to  accom 
plish  their  task  quickly,  it  was  dusk  when  they 
resumed  the  journey.  Once  clear  of  the  pass 
the  trail  descended,  a  clear  run  of  two  miles 
before  it  turned  and  disappeared  behind  a  fold 
of  the  mountains.  At  the  top  Miguel  left 
them.  It  was  not  necessary  to  guide  them 
further,  he  declared :  there  was  only  one  thing 
to  remember — where  the  trail  forked  they 
must  be  sure  to  keep  to  the  left. 

Johnston  lighted  their  big  searchlight  as 
Miguel  rode  back  with  a  parting  wave  of  his 
sombrero.  Smoothly  they  skimmed  down  the 
mountain  side;  their  searchlight  picking  out 

154 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

the  trail  with  its  silvery  brilliancy.  Where  the 
trail  divided  the  wheel  was  swung  over  and  the 
car,  according  to  Miguel's  directions,  was 
headed  up  the  left  fork. 

Half  an  hour  later  Fleming  motioned  to 
Sid  to  stop  the  car.  The  path  had  grown  so 
rough  that  they  were  forced  to  run  on  low 
speed,  and  even  then  it  was  frequently  neces 
sary  to  halt  and  reconnoiter.  The  night  had 
almost  closed  in  upon  them;  the  sky  had  deep 
ened  to  a  wonderful  blue ;  the  stars  hung  white 
above  them. 

"What  do  you  think  of  this  trail,  Doctor?  " 
Jerry  called. 

"  I  think,"  said  the  doctor,  "that  in  a  very 
short  distance  it's  going  to  cease  to  be  a  trail. 
But  I  guess  you'd  better  go  on  to  the  bend, 
then  we'll  be  able  to  see  where  we're  coming 
out." 

Ten  minutes  later  the  question  of  where  they 
were  to  come  out  was  settled  with  discon 
certing  suddenness.  The  car  had  crawled 
cautiously  around  a  spur  in  the  mountain,  its 
searchlight  showing  faint  traces  of  an  old  rock- 
strewn  trail  which  vanished  completely  be 
yond  the  radius  of  the  searchlight's  beams. 
Fleming  was  just  about  to  call  to  the  doctor 
to  ride  ahead  and  reconnoiter  when  suddenly 

155 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

the  car  pitched  forward  on  a  steep  down  grade. 
A  brake  band  had  snapped  and  for  one  tense 
instant  it  looked  as  if  the  chain  might  follow 
suit. 

There  was  a  moment  as  it  pitched  downward 
when  the  car  rocked  perilously  from  side  to 
side;  then  it  staggered  for  a  moment  under 
the  pressure  of  the  low  speed  clutch.  At  the 
bottom  of  the  trail  a  wall  of  rock  seemed  to 
rise  out  of  the  darkness;  there  came  a  crash, 
and  the  car  stopped  with  a  suddenness  that 
pitched  everyone  headlong. 

Fleming's  first  thought  was  for  Betty.  They 
had  been  obliged  to  put  her  in  the  tonneau 
amidst  the  baggage  and  supplies,  and  he  found 
her  in  the  bottom  of  the  car  trying  to  extricate 
herself  from  the  debris  of  broken  cracker 
boxes,  cans  of  corned  beef  and  tomatoes,  while 
one  of  the  extra  tires  strapped  on  in  the  rear 
had  broken  loose  and  was  encircling  her  shoul 
ders. 

"  Betty!    Are  you  hurt?  "  he  exclaimed. 

" No;  I  only  need  digging  out,"  she  laughed. 

Fleming  hurried  toward  her  with  a  light. 

"  Thank  God,"  said  Fleming,  and  "  Lucky 
tire!"  he  added  as  he  helped  her  out.  The 
doctor  came  scrambling  down  the  trail  after 
the  automobile  with  his  case  of  instruments. 

156 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

"  I  thought  I  would  sure  have  some  bones 
to  set  that  time,"  he  said  as  he  reined  in  his 
panting-  steed  and  swung  himself  out  of  the 
saddle. 

The  light  of  the  searchlight  showed  them 
that  they  had  landed  in  a  sort  of  rocky  cul-de- 
sac.  The  car  had  been  stopped  by  one  side  of 
this  well-like  ravine.  It  would  have  been  dam 
aged  to  a  much  greater  extent  if  the  sharp 
down  grade  of  the  old  trail  had  not  been  in 
terrupted  by  a  stretch  of  level  ground.  As  it 
was,  the  poor  Mountaineer  had  shattered  an 
other  mud-guard,  and  the  water  was  leaking 
out  of  the  radiator  from  a  dozen  wounds. 

"  And  my  solder's  most  gone,"  said  Sid  as 
he  ruefully  gazed  at  the  dented  and  sadly  torn 
piping. 

Fleming  and  the  doctor  looked  at  each  other. 
The  latter's  face  was  grimly  set. 

"It  looks  like  a  trap  to  me,"  he  said;  "can 
you  back  the  car  out  of  this  hole? " 

Fleming  shook  his  head.  He  pointed  out 
that  only  the  windlass  and  cable  could  get  them 
up  that  last  steep  pitch,  and  it  was  out  of  the 
question  to  try  and  use  them  in  that  dark 
pocket.  There  was  but  one  thing  to  do;  they 
would  have  to  make  themselves  comfortable 
until  the  moon  got  high  enough  to  light  up 

157 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

their  ravine,  then  possibly  they  might  be  able 
to  use  the  windlass. 

The  doctor  uncinched  his  saddle  girths  and 
threw  the  bridle  rein  over  his  broncho's  head, 
then,  while  Fleming  and  Sid  unloaded  pro 
visions,  he  set  out  to  do  some  exploring.  Be 
sides  the  old  trail  down  which  they  had  come 
there  was  another  way  out  of  this  well  of  rock 
—but  only  a  man  on  foot  could  make  use  of 
it.  The  doctor  clambered  up  this  natural  foot 
path  for  perhaps  twenty  rods.  It  ascended 
the  cliffs  opposite  to  where  they  had  come 
down  and  half  way  up  it  broadened  out  to 
form  a  ledge  twelve  feet  deep.  With  the 
fragments  of  rock  that  had  fallen  there  it 
made  a  natural  breastwork,  hung  balcony-like 
against  the  nearly  perpendicular  wall  of  the 
ravine.  The  doctor  gave  a  chuckle  of  keen 
satisfaction  as  he  stepped  upon  this  ledge.  He 
could  see  the  twinkle  of  Fleming's  lantern  far 
below  him  in  the  depths  of  the  ravine,  and  out 
lined  against  the  luminous  night  sky  was  the 
shoulder  of  the  mountain  with  the  old  trail 
notched  in  its  rocky  side. 

"  A  neat  little  strategic  point,"  said  the  doc 
tor,  and  scrambled  back  to  his  party. 

Sid  had  already  made  a  pot  of  his  incompar 
able  coffee  over  the  faithful  blow-torch,  Betty 

158 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

was  setting  forth  on  newspapers  the  tinned 
chicken,  tinned  beans,  more  or  less  broken-up 
crackers  and  condensed  milk  which  was  to 
form  their  meal.  She  had  recovered  from  the 
shock  of  their  sudden  descent  and  was  inclined 
to  look  upon  the  whole  adventure  joyfully  as 
"  experience."  In  the  fitful  light  from  lan 
terns  and  blow-torch  she  looked  distractingly 
pretty,  with  one  of  Jerry's  scarlet  handker 
chiefs  knotted  about  her  throat  and  a  new  light 
of  excitement  in  her  eyes.  She  smiled  almost 
in  the  old  way  upon  Fleming  when  he  shyly 
touched  her  hand  as  they  hunted  in  the  tonneau 
for  the  cups  and  spoons.  She  declared  that 
her  heart  failed  her  when  she  thought  of  her 
father  worrying  and  raging  in  Rock  Springs, 
but  after  this  dutiful  expression  of  concern 
she  threw  herself  into  the  adventure  with  a  full 
appreciation  of  the  picturesque  novelty  of  the 
situation. 

Supper  was  eaten  and  Sid  was  at  work  on 
the  car,  when  suddenly  the  doctor  sprang  to  his 
feet.  Far  up  on  the  mountain  side  there  had 
rung  out  the  faint  click  of  horses'  hoofs,  steel 
shod,  against  stone.  Lightning  quick  the  doc 
tor  threw  a  blanket  over  the  lantern.  For  a 
moment  there  was  silence,  and  then  the  sound 
was  repeated,  louder  this  time. 

159 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

"  Someone's  coming  down  the  trail,"  said  the 
doctor,  "  and  by  the  sound  he's  just  ridden 
around  that  last  spur.  Just  keep  your  Win 
chester  handy,  will  you,"  he  added  aside  to 
Fleming. 

In  the  darkness  the  four  stood  listening. 
The  sound  of  ringing  hoofs  grew  louder. 

"He  doesn't  care  how  much  noise  he 
makes,"  commented  the  doctor,  "  and  he's  in  a 
hurry.  If  he  don't  look  out  he'll  toboggan 
down  the  rest  of  the  way  into  this  very  pocket, 
just  as  we  did." 

In  another  moment  the  doctor's  prophecy 
was  fulfilled.  For  an  instant  they  saw  the 
horse  and  its  rider  outlined  against  the  sky  as 
they  made  the  last  turn  in  the  trail,  then  there 
came  the  sound  of  a  wild  scrambling  plunge 
down  the  mountain  side.  They  had  barely 
time  to  get  themselves  out  of  the  way  before 
the  breakneck  rider  was  in  their  midst.  The 
doctor's  hand  had  flown  to  his  hip  pocket,  but 
he  dropped  it  as  he  said: 

"Hello,  Jacinta!" 

The  rider  slid  from  her  horse,  while  the  oth 
ers  gathered  in  astonishment  around  her.  She 
was  breathless  and  trembling  so  that  she  had 
to  lean  against  her  pony  to  steady  herself. 

"  You've  got  to  get  out  of  here  quick,"  she 
160 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

panted.  "  Cal  Dean  and  the  outfit  from  Peter- 
sen's  are  on  your  trail.  I  suspected  Miguel — 
I  got  it  out  of  him  when  he  came  back  to 
camp — and  I  lit  out  as  soon  as  he'd  gone  again. 
They're  after  you,  Doc,  and  Miguel's  told 
them  Mr.  Fleming's  an  agent  for  Jim  Morse. 
They're  the  worst  lot  from  three  ranches  if 
Miguel's  leading  them!" 

The  doctor  put  a  steady  hand  on  the  girl's 
shoulder.  "  Are  you  sure,  Jacinta?  "  he  asked. 
"  How  do  you  know  Miguel  wasn't  trying  to 
scare  you? " 

"  Because  I  know  Miguel — and  I  saw  Cal 
Dean  on  the  lower  trail  just  at  dusk.  There 
were  five  others  with  him,  and  they  were 
headed  south." 

"  There's  no  serious  danger  in  Cal  Dean  un 
less  he's  part  drunk,"  said  the  doctor,  reflec 
tively. 

Jacinta  made  an  impatient  gesture. 

"Monday  was  pay  day  at  Petersen's,"  she 
said,  "  ar  A — listen- 
It  T.as  a  long  minute  before  the  others 
heard  what  her  keen  ears  had  detected — the 
far-away  sound  of  horses  scrambling  cau 
tiously  down  a  rocky  trail.  The  doctor  loos 
ened  his  six-shooter. 

"  There's  no  use  in  the  rest  of  you  being 
161 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

mixed  up  in  this,"  he  said;  "  I'll  go  up  the  trail 
and  meet  them." 

"  By  Jove,  you'll  do  nothing  of  the  kind! " 
Fleming  cried.  "You  came  up  into  this 
country  to  accommodate  me — it's  a  pity  if  I 
can't  do  as  much  for  you.  I  only  wish  we 
could  get  out  of  this  trap  of  a  place " 

The  doctor  whistled  thoughtfully.  "We 
can,"  he  said.  "There's  a  Romeo  and  Juliet 
balcony  up  there  that  was  just  built  for  this 
kind  of  a  party.  Come  on." 


162 


CHAPTER  XV 

FSN'T  all  this  rather — melodramatic, 
Doctor?"  Fleming  asked,  laughingly, 

J  as  he  unloaded  from  the  tonneau  his 
pistols  and  Winchester.  "  Surely  you  can't 
mean  that  we're  in  for  a  real  row,  can  you?  " 

The  doctor  smiled  grimly.  He  had  just 
driven  his  horse  and  Jacinta's  deeper  into  the 
ravine,  and  he  was  now  examining  his  own  gun 
hurriedly. 

"  You  don't  undestand  the  sheep  and  cattle 
question  out  here,  Fleming,"  he  said.  "  In 
its  way  it's  as  bitter  as  the  race  question  in  the 
East.  And  in  this  case  it's  an  excuse  for  Cal 
Dean  to  organize  a  shooting  party.  He  hates 
me — and  unfortunately  he's  got  pay  day  on 
his  side.  Listen  to  that ! " 

As  if  to  emphasize  his  point  there  came  to 
their  ears  a  faint  snatch  of  ribald  song,  and 
then  the  nearer  sound  of  a  horse  being  urged 
recklessly  over  the  old  trail. 

"Drunk  enough  to  be  gay  with  their  guns/* 
commented  the  doctor.  "Bring  what  extra 
drinking  water  you've  got  and  a  blanket  or 

163 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

two,  and  follow  me  up  the  other  side  of  the 
ravine  there." 

Into  one-half  of  this  dark  cleft  in  the 
mountains  a  glorious  moon  was  pouring  its 
radiance.  It  illumined  the  little  fortress  nature 
had  thrown  out  high  upon  the  cliff  side  until 
its  rocky  walls  were  shimmering  in  a  bath  of 
quicksilver.  It  picked  out  every  stunted  tree 
and  boulder  on  one  side  of  the  ravine,  but  left 
the  other  in  a  purple-black  shadow.  In  this 
inky  blackness  the  old  trail  descended,  al 
though  there  was  a  point — where  the  pathway 
turned  the  spur  of  the  mountain — when  a  rider 
on  the  trail  stood  out  for  an  instant  clear 
against  the  night  sky.  Past  this  point  Flem 
ing  and  the  doctor  watched  six  men  ride,  to 
be  swallowed  up  in  the  darkness  of  the  de 
scending  trail. 

"  Cal  Dean  and  five  others,"  said  the  doc 
tor.  "  And  one  of  'em  Miguel.  They've  reck 
oned  on  our  being  down  there  at  the  bottom," 
he  added;  "and  I  guess  they're  some  disap 
pointed  to  find  we've  vamoosed.  Nice,  snug 
little  shelf  we've  got  up  here,  anyway " 

"But  the  car's  down  there!"  observed 
Fleming.  "  I  wish  I  could  have  got  it  under 
cover." 

The  doctor  crouched,  peering  keenly  be- 
164 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

tween  two  convenient  rocks.  Suddenly  his 
arm  went  up  and  the  crack  of  a  six-shooter 
rang  out.  There  was  the  immediate  sound  of 
a  retreat  up  the  trail. 

"  I  thought  so,"  he  said.  "  They  were  get 
ting  ready  to  play  funny  with  the  car.  You'll 
have  to  keep  your  eyes  on  it,  Fleming — or  it 
will  be  us  for  town  on  foot,  if  they  can  get  a 
match  to  it." 

And  then  he  added  sharply,  to  Betty,  who 
had  half  started  to  her  feet  when  the  shot 
rang  out :  "  Don't  stand  up,  any  of  you.  They 
know  where  we  are  now,  and  this  moonlight 
puts  us  right  in  the  limelight.  Just  lie  low  and 
let  them  open  the  ball." 

A  silence,  tense  with  expectation,  fell  over 
the  canyon;  then  a  voice  seemed  to  leap  out 
at  them  from  the  old  trail : 

'  We  don't  see  your  cayuse,  Doc  Chanler, 
but  we  know  you're  there.  We  want  a  little 
conversation  with  you  and  it'll  be  better  for  all 
concerned  if  you  jest  step  out  an'  give  it  to 
us.  We'll  wait  five  minutes,  and  if  you  don't 
climb  down  on  the  tick,  we're  goin'  to  shoot 
up  this hole  in  the  wall." 

Dead  silence  for  a  moment.  Then  the  doc 
tor  half  arose,  a  troubled  frown  on  his  face. 

"  I  don't  like  it  on  account  of  the  women," 

165 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

he  muttered  to  Fleming.  "Mebbe  I'd  better 
go  down  and  have  it  out  with  'em " 

But  before  he  could  finish  Betty  put  her 
hand  on  Fleming's  arm. 

"  I'm  not  afraid,  Jerry,"  she  said  steadily. 
''  You  won't  let  him  go  down  there,  will  you?  " 

"Of  course  not,"  said  Jerry  cheerfully. 
"  Consider  yourself  appointed  captain  of  the 
beleaguered  forces,  Doctor!  And  go  light  if 
it  comes  to  gun  play,"  he  added  in  an  under 
tone,  "  for  we've  only  got  a  few  rounds  to  our 


names." 


The  doctor's  reply  was  cut  short  by  a  voice 
from  the  dark  announcing  the  end  of  the  five 
minutes. 

"I  guess  I  won't  come  down,  Cal,"  called 
the  doctor  in  his  calm  drawl.  "But  I  advise 
you  to  think  twice  before  you  get  funny  writh 
your  guns.  The  law  don't  like  fellows  that 
shoot  up  tourists  any  more  than  it  does  sheep 
killers." 

A  string  of  profanity  followed  this  ulti 
matum.  There  was  a  short  consultation  on  the 
other  side  of  the  ravine.  Then  suddenly  the 
night  became  hideous  with  a  wild  yelling  and 
shooting.  Half  a  dozen  bullets  whistled  over 
their  heads. 

"  Sit  still,"  commanded  the  doctor.  "  It's 
166 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

a  regular  cowpunchers'  bluff.  Save  your  am 
munition  till  they  charge  us." 

"Till  they  charge  us!"  Betty  heard  the 
command  and  shivered  with  terror.  She  drew 
a  little  nearer  to  Jacinta,  who  sat  stoically 
clasping  her  knees,  only  her  black  eyes  show 
ing  her  excitement.  The  two  knelt  behind  a 
pile  of  broken  rock  which  lay  at  the  back  of 
their  natural  fortress.  High  above  them  the 
cliff  towered.  By  throwing  back  her  head 
Betty  could  see  the  stars  through  a  fringe  of 
brush  at  the  edge  of  the  ravine.  Everything 
was  unreal — a  dream  from  which  she  would 
presently  awake  with  a  start  of  fright.  By 
rising  on  her  knees  she  could  see  the  car,  its 
brasswork  shining  in  the  silvery  moonlight  at 
the  bottom  of  the  ravine.  She  wondered  if 
any  of  them  would  ever  ride  in  it  again — and 
then,  swiftly,  several  things  happened  at  once. 
There  was  the  noise  of  horses  scrambling  down 
the  trail  opposite;  figures  hurled  themselves 
through  the  moonlight  at  the  bottom  of  the 
ravine,  and  Jacinta  sprang  to  her  feet  with  a 
scream  of  warning. 

For  the  little  Spaniard,  her  quick  ears  catch 
ing  the  tiny  sound  of  a  pebble  dislodged  at 
her  back,  had  turned  and  looked  straight  into 
the  face  of  Cal  Dean !  He  was  about  to  draw 

167 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

himself  up  from  his  last  foothold,  one  of  a  se 
ries  of  ledges  which  the  doctor  had  overlooked, 
and  which  gave  to  an  active  man  an  excellent 
opportunity  to  step  into  their  stronghold  by  the 
back  door.  He  thrust  her  aside  and  leveled  his 
gun  at  the  doctor,  who  had  rushed  toward  them 
at  Jacinta's  first  cry.  Betty  saw  the  doctor 
stoop  and  make  a  lightning  rush  at  his  assail 
ant.  For  an  instant  she  shut  her  eyes  and  then 
she  heard  Fleming  call  to  Sid  for  help. 

Up  the  steep  path  from  the  ravine  below 
the  remaining  members  of  Cal  Dean's  party 
had  made  a  quick  rush.  Sid,  momentarily  con 
fused  by  the  attack  on  both  sides  of  them, 
hesitated,  waving  his  revolver  wildly ;  Fleming, 
in  no  condition  to  do  battle,  would  alone  have 
met  the  invasion  from  that  quarter  had  not 
Jacinta  sprung  to  his  relief. 

She  was  as  quick  and  as  fearless  as  some 
enraged  wild  thing;  she  emptied  her  Colt's 
automatic  down  the  path  in  a  way  that  effec 
tively  gave  pause  to  the  four  who  still  remained 
there.  One  had  already  gained  the  level  of 
their  defenses,  and  had  thrown  himself  upon 
Jerry.  Betty  saw  them  swaying  dangerously 
near  the  edge  of  the  cliff.  Something  primi 
tive  and  fiercely  unafraid  awoke  in  her.  She 
darted  across  the  open  space,  stooping  swiftly 

168 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

once  as  she  ran,  and  the  next  instant  Jerry's 
man  staggered  back  with  a  howl  of  pain — for 
Betty  had  hit  him  squarely  between  the  shoul 
ders  with  a  most  effective  fragment  of  red 
sandstone.  She  heard  Jerry  cry : 

"Go  back,  Betty— go  back!"  but  she 
stooped  for  another  rocky  missile.  Then  just 
over  her  head  there  blazed  out  a  deafening 
roar.  She  saw  a  man  stagger  backwards  down 
the  path;  a  second  and  a  third  shot  followed 
and  Jerry  fell  at  her  feet. 

Of  the  moment  that  ensued  Betty  never 
could  remember  anything  clearly  except  the 
pallor  of  Jerry's  face  as  she  bent  over  him. 
More  shots  whistled  overhead;  she  heard  the 
scrambling  retreat  of  the  besieging  party  down 
the  cliff  side  and  she  saw  Jacinta  snatch  up 
Fleming's  revolver  as  it  fell  from  his  hand. 
The  doctor  came  running,  his  smoking  six- 
shooter  in  his  hand,  and  Betty  wondered 
vaguely  why  such  a  good-humored  man  should 
swear  like  a  pirate.  Then  all  sounds  grew 
faint  and  far  away,  the  night  darkened,  and 
Betty,  having  acquitted  herself  extremely 
well  for  two  minutes,  quietly  fainted  away. 

A  few  minutes  later  she  opened  her  eyes  to 
Jerry's  face,  very  near  her  own  and  haggard 
with  anxiety. 

169 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

"You — you're  not  dead?"  she  whispered. 

Jerry  laughed  and  pointed  to  the  bandage 
about  his  head.  "  Only  scratched  my  scalp," 
he  assured  her.  ;'  Would  you  have — have 
cared,  Betty?  " 

In  the  darkness  he  was  very  close  to  her,  his 
face  wistfully  white  above  her.  Deep  in  her 
heart  of  hearts  she  knew  she  would  have 
" cared  "  —immeasurably;  but  the  time  was  not 
come  when  she  could  believe  in  him  wholly. 
She  freed  herself  from  his  supporting  arm. 

"Of  course  I  should  have  cared,  Jerry — 
terribly,"  she  said  with  a  laugh  that  shook  a 
little  in  spite  of  herself.  "What  is  going  to 
happen  to  us  next?  Have  we  driven  them 
away,  do  you  think?" 

Jerry  did  not  answer  for  a  moment.  He 
folded  a  blanket  to  make  her  more  comfort 
able,  and  he  made  light  of  their  position;  but 
he  took  pains  that  he  and  the  doctor  should 
be  out  of  earshot  when  they  talked  over  their 
next  move.  Cal  Dean  and  at  least  one  of  his 
party  were  disabled — that  much  satisfaction 
remained  to  them  from  the  encounter,  but  be 
tween  Fleming,  the  doctor  and  Sid  there  re 
mained  only  a  half  dozen  rounds  of  ammuni 
tion. 

"  They  may  not  charge  us  again,"  said  the 
170 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

doctor,  "but  I'm  inclined  to  think  they  will. 
They're  in  an  ugly  temper,  that's  plain;  and 
the  little  damage  we've  done  them  has  only 
made  them  worse.  I  wish  I  had  made  a  better 
job  of  Cal  Dean,"  he  added  grimly.  "  I  only 
had  a  chance  to  wing  him.  Well,  we  can  wait 
— and  that's  all  we  can  do." 

An  hour  passed  on  leaden  wings.  The 
moonlight  shifted  till  their  stronghold  was  in 
darkness  and  the  old  trail  opposite  was  il 
lumined.  The  car  was  being  slowly  engulfed 
in  the  creeping  shadows  of  the  ravine.  There 
was  no  sign  of  their  assailants,  but  their  horses 
still  stood  below  the  trail. 

'  They're  going  to  wait  till  the  moon  goes 
down,"  said  the  doctor.  And  in  the  darkness 
Fleming  instinctively  put  his  hand  over  Bet 
ty's. 

"  Poor  little  girl,"  he  whispered.  "  I'd  give 
anything  if  you  were  out  of  this!" 

Betty's  hand  responded  faintly  to  his  clasp. 

'  You  needn't  worry  about  me,  Jerry — or  feel 

sorry  for  me.    I'm  learning  some  things,"  and 

she  smiled  at  him  with  an  expression  her  face 

had  never  worn  for  him  before. 

There  remained  only  a  broad  bar  of  moon 
light  at  the  mouth  of  the  ravine.  In  ten  min 
utes  darkness  complete  and  enshrouding  would 

171 


be  upon  them.  Fleming  had  turned  to  speak 
to  the  doctor,  when  he  heard  an  exclamation 
from  Jacinta.  The  next  instant  below  them  a 
tiny  spark  of  light  flashed  out  near  the  dark 
bulk  of  the  car;  there  was  the  crack  of  a  pis 
tol  in  Jacinta's  hands ;  a  shrill  yell  pierced  the 
air,  and  then  the  whole  ravine  was  alight  from 
a  slender  column  of  flame  that  leaped  upward 
at  the  side  of  the  car. 

With  the  doctor's  warning  in  his  ears  Flem 
ing  plunged  downwards  toward  the  blaze.  He 
was  oblivious  to  everything  except  the  fact  that 
his  car  was  in  danger.  He  was  seized  with  a 
mad  frenzy  that  gave  him  for  the  moment  a 
strength  and  coolness  not  his  own.  A  shadowy 
figure  rose  in  his  path  and  went  down  before 
the  savage  blow  he  aimed  at  it.  A  second 
loomed  in  the  darkness  and  he  used  one  of  the 
two  cartridges  he  had  left  in  his  gun — without 
effect  apparently,  for  the  fellow  blazed  at  him 
as  he  ran.  Close  behind  him  came  Sid  and  the 
doctor.  He  heard  the  crack  of  their  pistols 
twice  before  he  reached  the  Mountaineer. 

The  right  side  of  the  car  was  not  a  foot  from 
the  leaping  column  of  flame;  Fleming  saw  at 
once  that  one  of  their  gasolene  cans  from  the 
running  board  on  that  side  had  been  emptied 
on  the  ground  and  fired.  If  they  saved  the 

172 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

car  they  must  push  it  away  from  that  growing 
flame ;  and  they  must  risk  being  shot  from  am 
bush  while  they  were  doing  it.  But  in  that 
instant  for  Jerry  Fleming  there  was  no  pos 
sible  choice. 

The  car  had  got  to  be  saved. 

With  a  yell  to  Sid  and  the  doctor  he  ran  to 
the  back  of  the  car.  One  tremendous  effort 
and  the  Mountaineer  moved  half  its  length.  It 
was  clear  of  the  flame,  and  two  feet  more  would 
have  made  it  quite  safe  in  that  windless  night, 
when  a  shot  rang  out  from  the  farther  end  of 
the  ravine  and  the  doctor  dropped  to  the 
ground. 

'  They've  got  me,  boys,"  he  gasped.    "  You 
make  for  cover.     .     .     ." 

"  Not  without  you,"  said  Fleming;  and  they 
hurriedly  dragged  him  to  shelter  behind  the 
car. 

The  Mountaineer  stood  with  its  length  across 
the  ravine.  Thus  it  afforded  protection  of  a 
sort,  and  gave  them  time  to  take  breath.  Under 
the  doctor's  direction  they  slit  his  coat  sleeve 
and  bound  up  the  wound,  which  he  called  a 
mere  furrow,  to  be  regarded  as  a  matter  of 
course.  Twice  Fleming  and  Sid  dashed  out 
to  throw  sand  upon  a  tongue  of  flame  that 
crept  toward  the  car,  each  time  drawing  down 

173 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

upon  themselves  a  scattering  volley  from  the 
dark. 

"The  cowardly  skunks!"  groaned  the  doc 
tor.  "  Save  your  one  round,  for  they'll  rush  us, 
now,  I  guess." 

He  was  right.  At  the  end  of  a  five-minute 
wait  that  seemed  a  nerve-racked  hour,  Cal 
Dean  made  his  last  onslaught.  It  was  like  him 
— a  display  of  savage  bravado.  There  were 
four  of  them,  and  they  made  their  charge 
mounted,  yelling  and  shooting  as  they  rushed 
down  the  ravine.  Fleming  took  cool  aim  over 
the  tonneau  seat.  For  Betty's  sake  he  must 
make  his  last  shot  do  its  work.  As  the  fore 
most  rider  came  into  the  radius  of  light,  Flem 
ing  fired.  He  saw  the  man  sway  in  the  saddle, 
and  then  high  over  the  infernal  din  there  came 
the  crisp  crack  of  Winchesters  from  the  old 
trail. 

The  doctor  pulled  him  down  to  the  ground. 
"  Listen ! "  he  cried,  and  his  voice  was  shrill  in 
Fleming's  ear.  ;'  That's  a  Winchester — look 
there — look  up  the  trail !  That's  Myrick — My- 
rick  and  the  boys,  thank  God !  " 


174 


CHAPTER    XVI 

A  his  hotel  in  Rock  Springs  Betty's 
father  was  eating  a  distracted  break 
fast.  This  was  Friday  morning. 
Since  Tuesday  afternoon,  as  he  himself  de 
clared,  he  had  lost  in  weight  and  grown  ten 
years  older.  For  the  hotel  employees  life  had 
also  been  difficult  since  Hiram  D.  Albright 
arrived.  Betty's  wire  had  caught  him  before 
he  had  left  the  train  at  Rock  Springs  and  re 
lieved  his  first  agony  of  fear  for  her  safety. 
Fortunately  his  uncertainty  had  been  brief,  for 
he  had  not  awakened  from  his  nap  until  the 
train  was  pulling  into  the  town,  and  before  he 
had  fully  realized  that  Betty  was  not  on  board 
they  were  pushing  her  telegram  into  his  hands. 
But  the  reaction  from  that  one  moment  of 
fright  was  fraught  with  uncomfortable  conse 
quences  for  everyone  around  him.  He  pes 
tered  the  hotel  people  with  questions  about  the 
locality  of  Myrick's  sheep  camp  until  they  fled 
when  they  saw  him  coming;  on  Wednesday, 
when  Betty  did  not  appear,  they  were  obliged 
to  wrest  him  away  from  a  fixed  determination 
to  go  forth  and  hunt  for  her.  They  explained 

175 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

to  him  that  the  sheep  camp  was  a  long  day's 
journey  from  Rock  Springs,  and  that  he  did 
not  seem  exactly  in  training  for  a  sixty-mile 
jaunt  on  horseback.  He  gave  up  his  project 
for  that  day;  but  on  Thursday  uncertainty 
and  anxiety  had  reduced  him  to  a  fearful  state 
of  temper.  As  his  anxiety  for  Betty  deepened 
his  ire  against  the  cause  of  it  all  increased. 
Poor  Jerry  had  never  before  occupied  so  low 
a  place  in  the  estimate  of  the  man  he  would 
fain  have  called  father-in-law. 

One  reflection  gave  the  old  gentleman  a 
gleam  of  satisfaction.  His  car  and  his  man 
would  win  the  race.  Vannuccini  should  be,  as 
nearly  as  Mr.  Albright  could  figure  it,  three- 
quarters  of  the  way  across  Idaho.  His  ha 
rassed  countenance  relaxed  to  a  grim  smile 
whenever  this  thought  occurred  to  him.  On 
this  Friday  morning  at  breakfast  he  found  it 
necessary  to  stimulate  his  spirits  at  frequent 
intervals  with  the  picture  of  Jerry's  deserved 
defeat,  for  no  word  had  come  of  Betty.  Be 
fore  he  had  finished  the  cheerless  meal,  he  had 
finally  made  up  his  mind  to  send  out  an  emis 
sary  to  recover  and  fetch  back  his  wayward 
daughter. 

As  he  stepped  outside  the  door  of  his  hotel 
he  heard  the  honk,  honk,  of  a  familiar  horn. 

176 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

He  turned  toward  the  sound  with  an  incredu 
lous  start,  and  the  next  instant  Betty  was  in 
his  arms,  hugging  him  wildly,  overflowing  with 
explanations,  laughing,  begging  him  not  to 
scold  her  and  making  it  temporarily  impossible 
for  him  to  utter  a  word. 

'You  dear  old  dad!"  she  cried,  encircling 
his  neck  in  a  strangling  embrace,  "  I  know 
you've  got  a  lot  of  horrid  things  bottled  up  to 
say  to  us,  but  don't  do  it !  Just  think  how  glad 
you  are  to  see  me  again  all  safe  and  sound, 
and — and  here's  Jerry,  dad;  he's  done  the 
greatest  stunts  with  his  car — now,  shake  hands 
with  Jerry,  there's  a  dear !  " 

But  the  name  and  sight  of  Jerry  liberated  all 
his  indignation.  He  sternly  removed  his  daugh 
ter's  arm  from  around  his  neck  and  bade  them 
follow  him  inside. 

It  was  a  memorable  half  hour  that  ensued. 
Even  the  intrepid  Betty  was  impressed  by  her 
father's  wrath.  She  gave  up  trying  to  defend 
her  own  carelessness  in  getting  left  behind,  and 
tried  to  make  her  father  see  that  she  had  been 
moved  by  the  highest  humanitarian  motives 
when  she  went  to  the  succor  of  Jerry. 

"  Why,  his  shoulder  was  dislocated,  father!  " 
she  protested.  "  And  when  I  found  out  he  was 

hurt  up  in  that  sheep  camp " 

177 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

"  What  was  he  doing  in  a  sheep  camp  forty 
miles  or  more  off  his  route?  "  her  father  inter 
rupted.  "  What  were  you  doing,  sir? "  he 
barked  at  Jerry,  his  keen  eyes  under  their 
shaggy  brows  beginning  to  gleam  ominously. 
Jerry  opened  his  lips  to  reply,  but  a  sudden, 
desperate  eloquence  seemed  to  have  seized 
Betty.  Her  face  grew  very  rosy ;  she  plucked 
her  father  insistently  by  the  lapel  of  his  coat. 

"  He  was  crossing  the  Divide,"  she  rushed 
in.  "And  there  was  a  Mexican  by  the  name 
of  Miguel  who  guided  us  wrong  and  we  had  a 
midnight  fight  with  desperadoes  and  we  killed 
Miguel- 

Her  father  threw  up  his  hands.  "  You  killed 
a  Mexican  by  the  name  of " 

"  Well,  somebody  did,"  Betty  went  on.  "  We 
think  it  was  Jacinta's  shot  that  finished  him, 
but  it  doesn't  matter  who  did  it.  It's  done. 
He  was  a  villain,  and  he  betrayed  us  and  tried 
to  fire  the  car,  and  if  My  rick  and  the  other 
sheepmen  hadn't  come  when  they  did  maybe 
I  wouldn't  be  here  talking  to  you  now.  The 
doctor  said " 

Her  father  sat  down  suddenly  upon  a  con 
venient  chair.  "  Betty,"  he  said  hoarsely,  "  will 
you  begin  at  the  beginning  and  let  me  have  it 
slowly?" 

178 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

It  was  exactly  what  Betty  wanted.  With 
all  the  dramatic  power  at  her  command  she 
related  the  story  of  their  night's  adventure, 
from  the  time  they  had  left  the  sheep  camp  to 
their  rescue  by  Myrick  and  two  other  sheep 
men.  She  told  of  their  finding  the  unfortu 
nate  Miguel  shot  dead  beside  the  car  he  had  at 
tempted  to  fire  and  of  the  escape  of  Cal  Dean 
and  his  followers  in  the  darkness.  They  had 
made  a  splendid  sweep  up  the  trail  at  the  first 
shot  and  got  away  in  the  confusion. 

"  They  were  regular  brigands,  dad ;  but  you 
couldn't  help  a  sneaking  admiration  for  the 
way  they  could  ride.  Why,  I  was  so  scared 
that  I  was  almost  dead,  but  when  daylight 
came  and  I  saw  the  trail  they  had  ridden  over, 
on  the  run,  you  know — I  couldn't  help  being 
glad  it  wasn't  one  of  them  who  wras  lying  down 
there  covered  with  a  linen  duster.  Of  course, 
it  was  awful  to  think  we  had  caused  the  death 
of  a  man,  but  out  here,  someway,  things  look 
different.  People  fight  if  they  have  to,  and 
when  they  get  into  the  kind  of  a  corner  we 
were  in  last  night- 
She  stopped  at  the  sight  of  her  father's  gray 
face  from  which  he  wiped  the  perspiration  with 
a  trembling  hand.  '  You  might  have  been 
killed!"  he  said  hoarsely. 

179 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

She  was  on  her  knees  beside  him  in  an  in 
stant,  with  a  contrite  arm  around  his  shoulders. 
"  I  was  in  no  danger,"  she  assured  him,  "  I  was 
hiding  behind  a  big  rock  most  of  the  time  with 
Jacinta." 

"  Jacinta — who's  she?" 

Betty  colored.  "  She — she's  the  girl  that 

Jerry — that •"  she  stopped  for  the  simple 

reason  that  she  did  not  know  what  to  say  next. 

Betty's  father  looked  keenly  from  one  to  the 
other.  "Well,  well?  "  he  inquired  sharply. 

"Why,"  said  Jerry,  very  simply,  because  un 
aware  of  complications,  "  she's  the  girl  I  met 
near  Black  Rock  Butte,  Monday  afternoon. 
She  was  running  away  from  this  same  Miguel 
— didn't  want  to  marry  him,  you  know — and 
she'd  lost  her  horse.  Of  course  I  had  to  take 
her  to  Myricks." 

Mr.  Albright  sniffed  contemptuously.  "  You 
virtually  threw  up  the  race  and  went  forty 
miles  out  of  your  way  for  a  girl?  " 

Jerry  colored,  but  he  stood  his  ground.  "It 
was  the  only  thing  I  could  do,  sir.  I  wouldn't 
leave  a  dog  in  that  burnt-up  desert  country. 
I  had  to  take  her  to  her  friends." 

"  Couldn't  have  brought  her  on  to  the  near 
est  town,  I  suppose?  "  Hiram  D.  Albright's 
tone  was  sarcastically  polite. 

180 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

"  Not  very  well,  sir."  Jerry  smiled  as  he 
remembered  Jacinta's  air  of  unshakable  deter 
mination. 

Betty's  father  misinterpreted  the  smile.  His 
temper  rose.  "Well,  you've  lost  your  race, 
sir,  and  as  far  as  I  can  see  you've  got  a  mighty 
poor  excuse.  Betty,  you  go  to  bed;  you  look 
petered  out." 

Betty  was  indeed  pale  with  weariness;  her 
pretty  hair  was  disheveled,  and  there  was  an 
unbecoming  smudge  on  her  nose.  But  in  Jer 
ry's  eyes  she  was  perfect,  for  she  turned  to 
him  with  a  radiant  smile  and  said : 

"You  did  perfectly  right,  Jerry,  whether 
you've  lost  the  race  or  not.  Here's  my  hand 
and  I  wish  you  luck." 

She  was  gone  before,  in  his  grateful  aston 
ishment,  he  could  reply,  and  he  did  not  linger 
in  the  grim  presence  of  Betty's  father.  There 
was  much  work  to  be  done  on  the  car;  Cal 
Dean's  attack  on  them  and  the  unfortunate 
end  of  Miguel  had  to  be  reported  to  the  author 
ities,  and  he  must  locate  by  telegraph,  if  pos 
sible,  the  whereabouts  of  Vannuccini. 

This  last  he  found  a  fruitless  task.  Vannuc 
cini  had  evidently  disappeared  somewhere  be 
yond  the  borders  of  Idaho,  possibly  off  the  line 
of  the  telegraph,  and  an  hour's  search  failed 

181 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

to  locate  him.  With  a  heavy  heart  Jerry  went 
back  to  the  hotel  for  a  brief  rest. 

"  I'm  afraid  the  game's  up,"  he  said  to  Sid, 
"but  we'll  go  on — it's  the  only  thing  we  can 
do." 

'Why,  sure!"  rejoined  Sid,  cheerfully. 
"  Never  say  die!" 

A  bath  and  a  sleep  restored  Fleming's  spir 
its  somewhat.  He  lingered  outside  the  dining- 
room  a  while  in  the  hope  that  Betty  would  ap 
pear  and  join  him  at  dinner,  but  he  was  half 
way  through  that  meal  when  she  came  in  with 
her  father,  a  new  Betty,  daintily  rejuvenated 
by  the  magic  of  a  fresh  toilette.  She  led  the 
way  to  the  table  where  he  sat,  and  his  heart  per 
formed  the  feat  of  leaping  upward  when  she 
took  the  chair  next  to  his. 

For  a  subtle  change  had  come  over  Betty. 
She  was  not  the  Betty  who  had  found  him 
merely  amusing,  or  the  coldly  disapproving 
Betty  of  the  last  few  days.  She  looked  at 
him  a  little  shyly,  but  with  a  sweet  friendliness 
that  made  him  most  foolishly  happy.  With  a 
simple  masculine  faith  he  accepted  her  changed 
attitude  unquestioningly ;  he  did  not  know 
whether  he  was  eating  ambrosia  or  a  very  du 
bious  entree. 

Betty  seemed  bent  on  making  that  meal  a 

182 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

pleasant  one ;  she  did  not  mention  Vannuccini, 
and  Fleming1  himself  had  almost  forgotten  the 
shadow  of  defeat  when  his  ears  caught  a  frag 
ment  of  the  conversation  at  the  next  table. 
Sid  Johnston  had  come  in  some  time  before 
and  taken  a  seat  at  a  table  just  back  of  them. 
He  had  apparently  made  friends,  after  his 
usual  custom,  with  his  fellow  diners,  and  was 
cheerfully  extracting  from  them  everything 
they  knew  or  declared  they  knew  about  the 
roads  in  Sweetwater  County.  There  was  one 
loquacious  individual  out  of  whose  mouth  wis 
dom  and  knowledge  had  been  rolling  for  some 
minutes  when  he  uttered  the  sentence  that 
arrested  Jerry's  attention. 

"You  want  ter  look  out  fer  that  old  trail 
near  Granger.  If  I've  said  it  once  I've  said 
it  a  hundred  times  that  somebody  would  take 
a  header  some  day  off  that  trail  into  the  gravel 
pit.  I  says  '  I  told  you  so ! '  to  the  section  boss 
th'  other  day  when  that  big  red  automobile  took 
a  flyer  into  the  pit,  and  I  says  to  him  that  the 
railroad  had  ought  to " 

He  got  no  further,  for  Jerry  and  Sid  de 
manded  simultaneously  to  know  what  automo 
bile  and  what  pit  he  was  talking  about.  He 
looked  amazed  at  the  interest  he  had  aroused, 
and,  flattered  by  the  fact  that  the  pretty  girl 

183 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

at  the  next  table  was  also  excitedly  listening, 
he  told  in  great  detail  a  story  that  put  new  life 
into  Jerry  and  Sid  and  sent  the  color  to  Betty's 
cheeks. 

Divested  of  its  ornamentation  the  tale  was  to 
the  effect  that  an  Italian  in  a  big  red  touring 
car  had  attempted  to  make  Granger  late  Mon 
day  night  and  in  the  dark  had  plunged  forty 
feet  into  a  gravel  pit.  The  narrator  drew  with 
the  point  of  his  knife  on  the  table-cloth  a  map 
of  the  two  trails  into  Granger.  One  of  them 
pursued  a  roundabout  way  into  the  town,  and 
the  other,  long  since  abandoned,  had  at  one  time 
reached  Granger  by  a  short  cut.  The  railroad, 
after  the  easy  manner  of  the  vicinity,  had  inter 
rupted  this  old  trail  by  digging  a  gravel  pit 
across  it ;  had  run  a  siding  to  the  spot  and  then 
had  neglected  to  put  up  a  single  warning  to 
the  wayfarer.  Vannuccini,  evidently  lured  on 
by  the  lights  of  the  town  just  ahead,  and  run 
ning  at  high  speed,  had  plunged  into  this  pit 
and  landed  beside  a  box  car  full  of  Japanese 
section  hands. 

It  was  not  the  miracle  of  the  escape  unhurt 
of  the  two  men  in  the  car  that  interested  that 
loquacious  individual  so  much  as  the  effect  of 
the  accident  upon  the  Japanese  section  hands. 
When  the  car  came  crashing  down  upon  their 

184 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

sleeping  place  they  at  first  thought  it  was  an 
earthquake,  and  Pete  Rankin,  the  section  boss, 
said  he  had  never  heard  such  an  uproar  of 
heathen  tongues  in  his  life.  Then,  when  the 
Japs  discovered  the  red  car  and  its  badly 
bruised  occupants,  they  were  near  to  mobbing 
the  unfortunate  Italian  for  what  they  consid 
ered  a  diabolical  attempt  on  their  lives. 

"But  the  car — was  it  smashed  up  much?" 
interrupted  Sid  eagerly. 

'  Well,  I  ain't  up  on  automobiles,"  admitted 
the  narrator,  "  but  I  seen  it  when  it  was  loaded 
on  a  car  for  Diamondville  an'  it  looked  to  me 
like  a  pretty  fair  imitation  of  a  wreck.  They 
sent  it  to  Diamondville  because  th's  a  big  ma 
chine  shop  there,"  he  added  in  answer  to  a 
question  from  Mr.  Albright,  who  had  joined 
the  group. 

Without  ceremony  Sid  Johnston  bolted  for 
the  door,  the  light  of  battle  gleaming  in  his 
eyes;  and  with  one  look  at  Betty,  Fleming  fol 
lowed. 

Betty  went  slowly  up  to  her  room.  She 
stood  at  the  window  a  few  minutes,  her  smooth 
brow  wrinkled  thoughtfully;  then  with  a  quite 
unreasonable  blush  she  pinned  on  her  hat  and 
ran  down  to  the  street.  As  she  left  the  hotel 
she  glanced  about  guiltily  for  her  father,  but 

185 


he  was  still  in  the  dining-room.  She  walked 
determinedly  down  the  street  until  she  came  to 
the  blacksmith  shop,  in  front  of  which  stood 
the  Mountaineer.  Sid  Johnston  was  pumping 
up  the  rear  tires  and  Jerry  was  testing  a  new 
set  of  dry  cells  with  his  ammeter. 

He  looked  up  surprised  as  she  stopped  be 
side  him.  "Would  you  like  some  more  adven 
tures,  Betty?  "  he  laughed. 

"  I  want  to  ask  you  something,  Jerry,"  she 
said.  "  Will  you  walk  down  the  street  a  little 
way  with  me?" 

When  they  had  turned  into  a  quiet  little 
side  street  she  said,  unexpectedly:  "Jerry, 
how  did  Mr.  Vannuccini  know  about  Jacinta?  " 

"  He  saw  her  first!  "  Jerry  laughed  ruefully. 
"  Met  her  on  the  western  edge  of  the  Red  Des 
ert  and  left  her  for  me  to  pick  up.  Pleasant, 
subtle  beggar  that  Vannuccini." 

"Too  subtle! "  said  Betty  scornfully. 

Jerry  laughed  as  if  nothing  could  depress 
him  now.  "  Never  mind,  Betty — didn't  he  run 
into  a  gravel  pit?  Sort  of  poetic  justice,  you 
know.  I  don't  believe  he's  more  than  got  away 
from  Diamondville  now;  I'll  beat  him  yet, 
you'll  see,  Betty." 

Betty's  eyes  kindled.  "  You  must  beat  him, 
Jerry.  I  shall  feel — I  can't  tell  you  how  I  shall 

186 


feel  if  you  don't.  You've  got  to  beat  him 
now;  it's  the  only  way  left  us  to  convince 
father- 
She  stopped  in  swift  confusion ;  the  "  us  " 
was  too  significant.  There  were  two  small 
boys  eying  them  from  a  doorway;  they  stared 
solemnly  round-eyed  at  the  spectacle  of  a 
strange,  pretty  young  lady  hastily  withdraw 
ing  her  hand  from  the  enthusiastic  clasp  of  an 
athletic  young  man  in  a  corduroy  coat.  The 
strange  young  lady  was  rosily  remonstrating 
with  the  athletic  young  man  for  his  indiscreet 
public  demonstration.  In  order  to  distract  at 
tention  from  her  own  rosiness  she  was  also 
talking  very  fast. 

"Of  course,  you  can  see  for  yourself  father 
is  dreadfully  prejudiced  now.  He's  got  to 
blame  somebody  for  his  two  days'  anxiety 
about  me,  and  besides  he  declares  you've  '  whif 
fled  '  about  in  a  most  unnecessary  manner  and 
probably  lost  the  race,  and  in  short  he  can't  see 
any  good  in  you !  There's  no  use  arguing  with 
dad — it  only  makes  him  stick  to  his  opinion 
harder.  The  only  way  to  convince  him  is  to 
show  him.  I  just' wish  he'd  been  with  us  yes 
terday.  He  wrould  have  realized  that  automo- 
biling  out  here  is  no  easy  thing.  I  almost  wish 
you  could  take  dad  right  out  into  the  canyons 

187 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

and  sage  brush  and  mountain  passes  and  things 
long  enough  to — to  scare  him!  Oh,  I  know 
that  sounds  bad,  but  you  know  what  I  mean. 
Dad  thinks  it's  just  a  matter  of  sticking  to  the 
wheel  and  whizzing  right  along.  Well,  don't 
you  see,  what  he  needs  is  to  be  put  in  your 
place  for  a  few  days.  I'm  afraid  father,"  she 
added  with  an  anxious  wrinkle  of  her  brows, 
"is  rather  spoilt — just  telling  people  to  do 
things  and  having  them  done  without  his  know 
ing  how  they're  done." 

Jerry  stopped  to  look  under  the  broad  brim 
of  Betty's  hat.  "  Shall  I  kidnap  him,  Betty? 
I  could  give  your  father  a  taste  of  the  road 
that  would  open  his  eyes;  if  you'll  help  me  I'll 
kidnap  you  both ! " 

Betty  stopped  short  and  clasped  her  hands 
excitedly.  "Oh,  Jerry,  will  you?  It  would 
be  the  very  thing!  I'd  love  to  be  kidnaped, 
and  father — he  wouldn't  like  it  at  all,  but  it 
would  be  good  for  him!  Could  you  do  it? 
Would  we  be  very  much  in  your  way?  " 

Jerry's  expression  hinted  that  Betty  could 
never  be  in  the  way.  He  declared  they  could 
make  room  in  the  tonneau  by  shipping  part  of 
their  supplies  ahead.  "  But  there  isn't  a  min 
ute  to  be  lost,"  he  added  with  a  glance  at  his 
watch.  "  I'll  be  at  the  hotel  with  the  car  in 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

twenty  minutes.  If  you  can  persuade  your 
father  to  get  in  for  a  short  ride  the  trick  is 
done.  Once  get  him  in  the  car  and  we  can 
make  it  as  long  a  ride  as  you  say." 

Betty  laughed  delightedly.  "I'll  do  it— I 
think  I  can  manage  him.  I'll  hurry  back  to  the 
hotel  and  pack  our  bags  and  in  twenty  minutes 
I'll  produce  the  victim." 

'  Once  aboard  the  lugger  and  the  girl  is 
mine,'  "  Jerry  quoted,  and  the  street  resounded 
with  their  laughter. 

Sid  Johnston  did  not  altogether  approve  of 
this  new  handicap,  but  he  had  a  secret  sym 
pathy  with  the  conspirators  which  kept  him 
from  more  than  a  perfunctory  grumble.  And 
to  Jerry's  real  surprise  Betty  produced  her 
father.  He  let  it  be  known  as  he  took  his  seat 
in  the  tonne au  that  as  a  concession  to  Betty  he 
would  lend  his  presence  to  the  race  as  far  as 
Granger.  He  looked  grimly  resistant,  how 
ever,  and  indisposed  to  lend  himself  to  the 
game  in  any  way.  He  was  also  pessimistically 
certain  the  landlord  would  forget  to  send  their 
luggage  on  to  Granger  that  afternoon.  Betty 
returned  to  make  sure  of  their  bags,  and  Jerry 
followed  her  inside. 

"  Betty,"  he  said,  "  are  you  game?" 

"  Depends  on  what  you  mean,  Jerry." 
189 


"Well,  see  here,"  he  went  on  hurriedly. 
"  Keep  out  a  small  bag  for  yourself,  put  in  a 
few  things,  and  send  everything  else  on  to — 
Pocatello!" 

Betty  gasped — "But  that's  in  Idaho!" 
'  Well,  I  asked  if  you  were  game!"  Jerry 
grinned  joyfully.    "  I've  put  in  an  extra  pair 
of  army  blankets,"  he  added  mysteriously. 

A  gleam  came  into  Betty's  eyes.  "Don't 
stand  there  grinning,"  she  said.  "  Help  me 
to  put  new  labels  on  these  things.  How  do 
you  spell  Pocatello,  anyway?" 


190 


CHAPTER    XVII 

THE  forty-mile  ride  from  Rock  Springs 
to  Granger  proved  disappointingly 
uneventful.  Nothing  happened  that 
could  show  off  an  aspiring  motorist's  in 
trepidity  or  skill;  the  trail  was  fairly  good  ex 
cept  for  the  tough  sage  brush;  there  were  no 
thrilling  grades,  no  dangerous  mountain 
passes,  nothing  as  it  should  have  been  accord 
ing  to  the  rules  of  picturesque  romance.  It 
was  very  tame.  Betty's  father  conveyed  the 
impression,  as  the  calm  afternoon  wore  on,  that 
the  difficulties  of  the  transcontinental  run  had 
in  his  opinion  been  highly  overrated.  He 
sniffed  scornfully  a  great  many  times  and  then 
went  uncomfortably  to  sleep. 

Betty,  who  was  sitting  in  front  with  Jerry, 
leaned  toward  him  and  whispered  despairingly : 
"  I  think  you  might  have  made  something  hap 
pen,  Jerry!" 

"  But  I  couldn't  do  anything  that  might  put 
us  back,  Betty,"  he  returned  unhappily.  "  He'd 
see  through  any  little  parlor  trick  I  might  per 
form,  anyway.  I've  got  to  overtake  Vannuc- 
cini.  I  must  make  the  best  time  I  can." 

191 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

'  Yes,  yes! "  she  agreed  entirely.  "  But  see, 
there  are  the  lights  of  Granger.  I  don't  be 
lieve  I  can  ever  persuade  him  to  go  on  with 
the  car  to-morrow." 

A  grin  and  a  look  of  inspiration  began  to 
overspread  Jerry's  face.  The  trail  runs  at 
some  distance  from  the  three  saloons,  hotel  and 
water  tank  that  make  up  Granger,  and  the 
traveler  who  would  pay  it  a  visit  must  branch 
off  at  a  certain  point,  cross  the  railroad  tracks 
and  ford  the  river  into  town.  When  they 
reached  this  point  Jerry  increased  his  speed  un 
til  they  were  leaving  the  few  scattered  lights 
of  the  place  behind  them  at  a  reckless  pace. 
Sid  leaned  forward  from  the  tonneau  and  re 
minded  Fleming  that  he  was  missing  Granger. 

"  Keep  it  to  yourself!"  he  was  commanded, 
and  Betty  gasped. 

"  Aren't  we  going  to  stop?  "  she  whispered. 

"Not  unless  you  say  so,"  Fleming  replied 
with  a  chuckle. 

Betty  did  not  say  so.  She  looked  around 
nervously  at  her  father,  but  he  was  asleep,  with 
his  head  bobbing  dreadfully  against  the  ton 
neau  back. 

"Poor  father!"  she  breathed;  but  she  did 
not  command  Fleming  to  take  them  back  to  a 
comfortable  hotel.  And  in  five  minutes  there 

192 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

was  no  sign  of  Granger;  behind  them  was 
nothing,  and  ahead  of  them  through  a  velvety 
starlit  darkness  the  trail  led  away,  into  the  un 
known.  In  the  distance  the  mountains  loomed ; 
all  around  them  fell  the  mysterious  stillness 
of  the  plains. 

Betty  stretched  out  her  arms  with  a  long 
breath  of  delight. 

"I  never  dreamed  of  stars  like  these!"  she 
whispered.  "  If  I've  got  any  gypsy  blood  I 
think  it  is  stirring  now.  Look,  the  earth  has 
melted  away,  there's  only  that  little  patch  of 
trail  under  our  searchlight  and  we're  flying 
through  immeasurable  space!  I'd  like  to  go 
on  like  this  forever — my  gracious!  father's 
waking  up ! " 

Father  was  indeed  waking  up.  He  de 
manded  to  know  if  they  were  ever  going  to  get 
to  Granger.  His  tone  was  undisguisedly  cross, 
and  as  Jerry  leaned  over  the  steering  wheel  he 
heard  Betty  give  a  nervous  little  giggle. 
'  You  break  it  to  him,  Betty,"  he  begged. 

"  It's  your  party!  "  she  returned. 

"Should  have  made  Granger  before  dark!" 
came  from  the  tonneau  behind  them. 

"  How  shall  I  begin? "  whispered  Jerry  'des 
perately. 

"Tell  him— oh,  I  don't  know  what!"  the 
H93 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

other  conspirator  replied,  as  she  choked  back 
a  second  giggle.  Jerry  thought  hard  and  rap 
idly  for  two  minutes.  Then  he  stopped  the 
car  and  turned  toward  the  voice  that  continued 
to  come  crossly  out  of  the  dark. 

;'  We've  gone  past  Granger,  sir,"  he  said. 

It  is  more  charitable  to  sketch  with  a  sparing 
hand  the  manner  in  which  Betty's  father  re 
ceived  this  announcement.  Futile  rage  is  never 
dignified,  and  in  this  case  the  wrath  of  Hiram 
D.  Albright  was,  probably  for  the  first  time  in 
many  prosperous  years,  as  impotent  as  a  damp 
sky-rocket.  He  could  not  get  over  or  around 
the  fact  that  his  expressed  wish  had  been  dis 
regarded,  that  he  sat  helplessly  stranded  in  to 
tal  darkness,  on  an  unknown  trail,  miles  from 
anywhere.  He  was  very  nearly  incoherent  with 
wrath,  but  they  understood  him  to  be  demand 
ing  explanations  of  this  incredible  and  astound 
ing  contempt  of  his  plans. 

"My  schedule  did  not  include  a  stop  at 
Granger,  Mr.  Albright,"  said  Jerry  respect- 
fully. 

Mr.  Albright  gasped,  and  demanded  forci 
bly  to  know  what  kind  of  idiotic  foolishness 
this  was.  "You  knew  I  wanted  to  stop  at 
Granger — wasn't  that  enough?"  he  roared. 

"  I  am  racing,  Mr.  Albright.  I'm  sorry  if 
194 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

you  are  inconvenienced,  but  when  you  accepted 
a  seat  in  my  car  you  accepted  racing  conditions. 
It  is  absolutely  necessary  that  I  make  the  best 
time  possible — will  you  excuse  me  if  we  go  on? 
We're  losing  valuable  time." 

And  he  threw  in  the  clutch  without  more 
ado.  From  sheer  amazement  Betty's  father 
subsided.  Several  miles  slipped  by  them.  The 
country  was  becoming  more  mountainous ;  the 
hills  began  to  loom  out  of  the  darkness;  more 
and  more  frequently  they  were  obliged  to 
dodge  the  giant  sage  brush;  the  rough  trail, 
merely  two-wheel  ruts  under  their  searchlight, 
twisted  up  hill  and  down,  like  an  ant  ingen 
iously  seeking  the  line  of  least  resistance. 

When  they  paused  at  last  with  their  front 
wheels  hanging  carelessly  over  the  bank  of  a 
small  stream,  Betty's  father  found  his  tongue. 

" It's  criminal  recklessness!"  he  cried,"  rush 
ing  through  country  like  this  after  dark!  I 
suppose  we'll  have  to  stop  here  for  the  rest  of 
the  night?" 

"Oh,  no,"  returned  Jerry  gaily,  "not  at  all! 
we'll  just  ford  this  brook  and  go  on." 

Mr.  Albright  stood  up  and  eyed  the  brook. 
To  his  imagination  it  seemed  fearfully  dark 
and  swift.  His  heart  quailed  before  its  un 
known  depths. 

195 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

"  Betty,"  he  commanded,  "  you  get  right  out. 
I'm  not  going  to  have  our  lives  risked  by  this 
foolhardy- 

"Now,  father,"  Betty  interrupted  sternly, 
"  you  sit  down.  Jerry  has  been  doing  this  kind 
of  thing  for  three  thousand  miles.  Why,  this 
is  nothing  to  what  he  has  done.  Jerry,  don't 
mind  us.  Just  go  ahead  as  if  we  weren't 
here." 

Jerry  and  Sid,  who  had  been  turning  the 
searchlight  on  the  stream,  climbed  back  to  their 
seats  and  a  minute  later  they  were  plowing 
through  the  water.  Compared  to  some  of  the 
fords  they  had  encountered  this  was  a  small 
affair,  but  it  had  its  due  effect  on  the  unaccus 
tomed  mind  of  Betty's  father.  As  they  de 
scended  deeper  into  the  water  he  clutched  the 
back  of  the  next  seat  as  if  fully  prepared  to 
swim  for  life  any  moment,  and  when  with  a 
last  swish  they  climbed  the  opposite  bank  he 
sank  back  limply. 

"Do  you  know,"  he  asked  Sid,  whom  hith 
erto  he  had  ignored,  "  how  long  he  will  keep 
this  up?" 

"  Oh,  we  may  run  all  night  unless  the  trail 
gets  too  bad,"  Sid  returned,  easily.  "  We  have 
frequently  lost  the  trail  on  a  night  like  this  and 
wandered  around  till  morning  looking  for  it. 

196 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

Of  course,  it's  never  a  dead  sure  thing  that  we 
won't  go  over  a  precipice  when  we  get  into 
the  mountains ;  but  you  have  to  take  your  risks, 
you  know,  in  a  contest  of  this  kind.  This  is  a 
cinch,  just  now,  compared  to  what  it  may  be 
later.  Why,  back  in  the  eastern  part  of  the 
State  we  crossed  a  thirty- foot-deep  gulch  on 
two  railroad  ties  and  the  same  night  we  came 
within  six  inches  of  taking  a  header  into  the 

Laramie  River " 

'  Young  man,  you  talk  too  much !  "  the  old 
gentleman  interrupted  him.  He  was  silent  for 
a  few  nervous  minutes  while  Jerry  guided  the 
car  around  the  shoulder  of  a  barren,  rocky  hill 
toward  which  they  had  been  climbing  for  the 
past  fifteen  minutes.  On  the  narrow  trail  with 
the  cliff  towering  above  them  on  their  right 
and  the  ominous  empty  blackness  at  their  left 
they  seemed  to  hang  between  earth  and  sky. 
As  they  dipped  into  the  shadows  of  the  descend 
ing  trail  Betty  gave  a  cry  of  alarm  and  her 
father  started  nervously  from  his  seat,  for  di 
rectly  in  their  path  loomed  up  a  shadowy  some 
thing  which  resembled  an  elephant  in  the  ex 
citing  instant  when  they  all  wondered  if  the 
brakes  would  stop  them  before  they  ran  into  it. 
When  they  found  it  to  be  a  big  boulder  from 
the  hill  above  they  had  to  face  the  necessity  of 

197 


THE    CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

clearing  it  from  the  path.  Sid  and  Jerry  had 
only  three  arms  between  them,  the  dislocated 
shoulder  being  still  troublesome,  and  a  hint  was 
conveyed  to  Mr.  Albright  that  his  help  would 
be  appreciated.  He  responded  readily  enough 
and  they  fell  to  work.  It  seemed  a  simple  busi 
ness  to  roll  the  boulder  down  the  hillside,  but 
in  reality  it  took  an  hour's  hard  work  to  pry 
the  rock  from  its  position  and  get  it  to  a  point 
where  a  united  push  would  send  it  down  the 
canyon  below. 

But  in  that  strenuous  hour  Betty's  father 
seemed  to  have  worked  off  some  of  his  bad 
temper.  He  rubbed  his  hands  with  satisfaction 
as  he  listened  to  the  crashing  descent  of  the 
boulder. 

"There!  That's  a  good  job  done,"  he  re 
marked,  and  Betty  called  out  tactfully: 

"What  would  we  have  done  without  you, 
Dad?" 

At  eleven  o'clock  Jerry  got  out  his  map. 
They  should  have  made  one  of  the  little  sec 
tion  houses  along  the  railroad  by  this  time,  but 
as  yet  not  a  twinkle  of  light  from  any  habita 
tion  had  been  seen.  An  hour  later  Jerry's  eyes 
made  out  the  dark  outline  of  a  low  building  a 
little  way  off  the  trail. 

"  It's  a  ranch  house,"  he  whispered  to  Betty. 
198 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

"  Shall  we  stop?  Have  you  had  enough  for 
to-night?" 

Betty  admitted  she  was  sleepy  and  famished. 
But  as  they  drew  near  to  the  dark  and  silent 
house  the  outlook  was  not  hopeful.  The  house 
was  set  sociably  in  the  midst  of  the  barnyard; 
a  pig  looked  out  inquisitively  from  a  rickety 
lean-to,  and  some  hens  roosted  on  the  front 
window-sill. 

"  I  don't  believe  we  want  to  stay  here,"  said 
Jerry,  "  but  I'll  just  have  a  look  in." 

The  look  appeared  to  be  enough.  They 
heard  him  knock ;  then  questions  and  apologies, 
and  a  moment  later  he  reappeared,  climbed  to 
his  seat  and  started  the  car.  When  the  house 
had  disappeared  in  the  night,  he  leaned  back 
and  laughed. 

"  It  was  a  bachelor's  establishment,"  he  ex 
plained,  "and  dirty! — there  were  two  small 
pigs  roaming  about  the  parlor  and  a  great  pile 
of  wool  in  one  corner.  I  think  we'll  have 
another  try  at  striking  a  section  house." 

For  an  hour  they  followed  the  trail.  A  great 
moon  had  risen  to  light  their  path,  but  beyond 
that  fortune  did  not  favor  them.  At  midnight 
there  was  still  no  trace  of  a  settlement  or  ranch 
house.  Sid  brought  some  food  out  of  their 
larder  and  Betty  suggested  they  roll  up  in 

199 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

blankets  and  sleep  on  the  ground.  She  de 
clared  she  had  always  had  a  longing  to  sleep 
on  the  ground  under  the  stars ;  but  her  father 
did  not  seem  to  share  her  enthusiasm.  He 
foresaw  rheumatism  in  every  joint  and  his  face 
grew  more  and  more  doleful  when  he  observed 
the  others  getting  out  the  blankets. 

"  No  one  ever  has  rheumatism  out  here,"  Sid 
assured  him,  "  you'll  sleep  like  a  top  and  wake 
up  five  years  younger." 

Jerry  admired  his  own  foresight  when  Betty 
cried  out  enthusiastically  over  the  beautiful, 
thick  army  blankets  he  brought  out  for  her. 
Her  father  was  equally  well  provided  and  was 
given  besides,  out  of  consideration  for  his 
elderly  bones,  the  cushions  and  rubber  coats. 
When  he  had  finally  wrapped  himself  up  and 
laid  down  he  was  rather  disappointed  to  find 
himself  fairly  comfortable. 

"  When  I  was  a  boy,"  he  said,  forgetting  his 
disgruntled  role  in  the  memories  roused  by  the 
open  sky  above  him,  "  I  used  to  camp  out  for 
weeks  at  a  time.  This  kind  of  reminds  me  of 
it."  And  he  was  off  on  a  tide  of  reminiscence, 
which  gradually  trickled  down  to  a  sleepy  dis 
connectedness  and  ended  in  a  gentle  snore. 

He  wakened  next  morning  to  a  rosy  dawn 
and  a  delicious  smell  of  coffee.  With  the  night 

200 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

his  crossness  had  evaporated.  Although  he 
would  not  have  admitted  it,  he  was  five  years 
younger,  as  Sid  had  prophesied,  in  spite  of  a 
terrific  stiffness  in  his  bones.  The  irresistible 
spirit  of  the  open  was  descending  upon  him. 
Before  they  had  finished  their  breakfast  of  ba 
con  (fried  over  a  fire  of  dry  sage  brush)  with 
crackers  and  coffee,  he  was  beginning  to  be 
lieve  there  was  nomadic  blood  in  him,  and 
Fleming  and  Betty  smiled  slyly  at  each  other. 

At  eight  o'clock  they  were  running  into  Dia- 
mondville.  This  coal-mining  settlement  lies  in 
a  barren  valley  and  to  reach  it  they  had  coasted 
down  a  hill  two  miles  long.  Before  half  this 
distance  had  been  covered  their  brake  bands 
caught  fire  from  friction  and  they  made  the 
rest  of  the  descent  trailing  blue  smoke  behind 
them.  Betty's  father  looked  rather  nervous, 
but  it  was  noticeable  that  their  early  morning 
run  through  the  mountain  gorges  where  the 
purple  gloom  of  night  still  lingered,  their 
struggles  with  sage  brush  and  greasewood  and 
their  final  flight  down  the  mountain  trail  had 
awakened  in  him  some  latent  taste  for  adven 
ture. 

"  If  Vannuccini  is  still  here,"  he  said,  as  they 
ate  a  second  breakfast  at  the  hotel  in  Diamond- 
ville,  "  I'd  just  like  to  go  on  with  him."  But 

201 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

they  soon  learned  that  Vannuccini  had  left  the 
place  late  the  afternoon  before. 

"  Why  shouldn't  we  go  on  with  Jerry,  any 
way?  "  Betty  boldly  suggested.  "  You  know, 
now  that  he  has  only  one  arm  he  can  really  use, 
you  would  be  such  a  help  to  him." 

This  view  of  the  situation  saved  his  pride. 
He  allowed  there  was  something  in  that, 
though  it  was  rather  odd  to  be  riding  in  the 
rival  car.  But  anyway,  he  didn't  mind  lending 
his  aid  to  the  expedition  as  far  as  Montpelier, 
considering  how  in  need  of  cool-headed  advice 
they  seemed  to  be. 

For  Betty's  sake,  Jerry  swallowed  this  cheer 
fully.  "  I  want  to  make  Montpelier  to-night," 
he  said.  "  We'll  have  to  be  off  in  half  an  hour. 
I'm  afraid  it  will  be  too  much  for  you  both, 
going  on  without  any  rest." 

Betty  stoutly  declared  she  was  ready  for 
anything,  and  her  father  was  inclined  to  be 
annoyed  at  the  presumption  that  he  was  not  up 
to  the  run.  In  consequence  the  forenoon  was 
still  young  when  the  travel-stained  Moun 
taineer  started  on  its  way  again  with  four  pas 
sengers. 

Just  at  dark  they  ran  into  Montpelier,  Ida 
ho.  In  that  day's  work  Jerry  felt  that  he  had 
accomplished  something  more  than  was  implied 

202 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

in  the  distance  covered.  Two-thirds  of  their 
way  had  been  one  continuous  fight  with  sage 
brush,  which  preempts  the  trail  and  spreads  its 
gigantic,  stubborn  growth  over  the  land  as  far 
as  the  eye  can  see.  It  was  often  necessary  to 
hew  their  way  through,  and  the  task  fell  upon 
Sid  and  Betty's  father.  Fleming,  with  his 
shoulder  still  in  its  bandages,  was  forced  to 
look  on,  which  he  did  at  first  with  some  uneasi 
ness,  at  the  spectacle  of  Hiram  D.  Albright 
with  his  coat  off,  swinging  a  vigorous  ax. 

"Don't  apologize  to  him,"  Betty  had  whis 
pered,  "  it's  good  for  him.  Don't  you  see  he 
begins  to  think  the  expedition  rests  on  his 
shoulders? " 

And  some  feeling  of  this  sort  or  perhaps 
the  exercise  in  that  air,  which  is  like  an  elixir 
of  youth,  or  the  changing  interests  of  the  trail 
which  runs  through  mountain  gorges  and  open 
plain,  had  certainly  vanquished  his  feeling  of 
resentment  toward  Jerry,  for  the  time  at  least. 
He  was  sitting  amiably  beside  the  latter,  who 
was  driving,  when  in  a  stretch  of  sand  they 
picked  up  the  unmistakable  tire  marks  of  the 
Superba.  They  had  evidently  been  made  some 
time  before,  but  an  overhanging  ledge  of 
rocks  had  kept  them  intact  from  the  wind. 

"He  was   certainly  going  some  when  he 

203 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

made  those  marks,"  Sid  observed.  Jerry 
nodded  a  rueful  assent. 

Hiram  bristled  defiantly.  "  Well,  I  guess 
we  can  overtake  him;  I  don't  see  any  reason 
why  we  shouldn't  if  we  don't  dawdle  around 
here- 

And  the  others  laughed,  for  he  had  evi 
dently  forgotten  he  was  riding  in  the  rival 
car.  But  his  exclamation  showed  how  far  his 
sympathies  had  been  unconsciously  enlisted. 

Jerry's  first  move  after  he  had  left  his  pas 
sengers  at  the  neat  little  hotel  in  Montpelier 
was  to  wire  Pocatello  and  Arco  for  news  of 
Vannuccini.  He  had  not  been  seen  in  either 
place.  Jerry  was  puzzled,  for  he  felt  certain 
his  rival  could  not  have  got  beyond  Arco,  and 
it  seemed  improbable  that  he  had  broken  down 
somewhere  east  of  there.  But  he  had  learned 
not  to  borrow  trouble,  and  he  ate  as  hearty  a 
supper  as  if  his  mind  was  quite  at  rest. 

In  Montpelier  that  evening  there  was  a 
"show"  which  seemed  to  be  drawing  half  of 
the  town's  thousand  inhabitants.  From  the 
door  of  the  hotel  Betty  watched  them  pouring 
into  the  hall — men,  women  and  babies.  There 
was  already  a  line  of  baby-carriages  outside 
the  hall,  advertising  the  presence  inside  of 
more  mothers.  As  the  last  straggling  cow- 

204 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

boy  and  miner  disappeared  and  the  sound  of 
an  aged  piano  being  disrespectfully  treated 
came  out  to  them  Betty  became  possessed  of 
a  desire  to  "just  look  inside  and  see  what 
they're  doing."  Her  father  demurred  that 
she  ought  to  be  resting,  and  Fleming  felt  a 
little  uneasy  about  the  nature  of  the  entertain 
ment — until  Betty  pointed  out  the  perambula 
tors.  Then  they  gave  in  and  both  of  them  es 
corted  her  across  to  the  hall. 

Their  entrance,  or,  rather,  the  entrance  of 
Betty,  made  considerable  stir  among  the  ser 
ried  rank  of  the  back  rows,  but  attention  re 
turned  with  a  snap  to  the  stage  a  second  after 
— for  the  Soubrette  had  appeared.  She  was  a 
matronly  soubrette  who  looked  as  if  she  might 
be  a  good  mother — or  at  a  stretch  a  grand 
mother! — but  as  she  lifted  her  skirts  and  exe 
cuted  a  modest  step  or  two,  every  man  in  the 
house  arose  and  craned  his  neck  with  simple 
delight  over  the  shoulder  of  the  man  ahead ! 

"  Say,  they'd  kill  themselves  over  a  good 
show!"  Sid  chuckled.  Betty  declared  it  was 
pathetic.  "  Why,  the  poor  things  are  starved!  " 
she  said. 

"  Sure,"  Sid  agreed,  "  ain't  they  three  thou 
sand  miles  from  Broadway?  " 

That  was  his  point  of  view;  but  when  they; 

205 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

left  the  hall  the  Montpelier  public  was  uproar 
iously  happy  and  everybody  was  buying  soap 
and  medicine  from  the  members  of  the  com 
pany  between  the  acts. 

As  Betty  left  the  hall  she  was  aware  that 
her  father,  who  followed  them,  had  stopped, 
staring  at  someone  in  the  crowd  that  stood  for 
want  of  benches  at  the  back  of  the  auditorium. 

;<  What  does  father  see?"  she  asked  of 
Jerry,  and  they  both  stepped  again  inside  the 
door.  They  saw  Betty's  father  shouldering  his 
way  through  the  crowd  toward  a  man  leaned 
against  the  wall,  conspicuous  in  that  cheering 
audience  because  of  his  listless  and  disgruntled 
air.  Betty  recognized  him  first. 

"Why,  it's  Jarvis!"  she  cried. 

Jerry  whistled  under  his  breath:  "  Then 
Vannuccini  must  be  here  too !  It's  no  use  wait 
ing  in  this  heat,"  he  added;  "  let  me  take  you 
over  to  the  hotel,  Betty." 

When  they  were  in  the  open  air  again  Betty 
turned  toward  him  eagerly.  "  What  will  you 
do  now?  "  she  asked. 

"  Get  a  good  night's  rest,"  he  laughed. 

She  looked  a  little  disappointed.  "Oh!  I 
thought  perhaps  you'd  steal  off,  and  get  the 
advantage  of  the — the  other  car  by  miles  be 
fore  morning." 

206 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

"I'd  like  to,  Betty;  but  it  doesn't  pay  to 
overdo  the  thing.  Sid  and  I  need  sleep,  and 
besides,  they  say  the  trail  from  here  is  moun 
tainous.  It's  too  risky  at  night.  You  look 
tired  to  death,  Betty.  Get  a  good  night's  rest, 
and  if  we're  off  before  you  wake  in  the  morn- 
ing- 

"Jerry  Fleming!"  she  interrupted,  "you're 
thinking  of  going  on  without  me ! " 

Jerry  looked  uncomfortable.  "Betty,  you 
know  I  wouldn't  willingly  leave  you  be- 
hind- 

She  turned  away  to  mount  the  stairs  and  as 
she  did  so  she  shook  a  threatening  finger  at 
him. 

"If  you  leave  me  behind,  willingly  or  un 
willingly,  you'll  be  sorry! " 

Fleming  asked  the  clerk  to  send  Johnston 
up  as  soon  as  he  came  back  to  the  hotel,  and 
then  he  sought  his  own  room.  In  ten  minutes 
someone  knocked  at  his  door.  To  his  surprise 
Betty's  father  walked  in.  He  wore  the  ex 
pression  that  his  employees  called  the  trouble- 
ahead-look. 

"Suppose  you  saw  Jarvis?"  he  began. 

Jerry  nodded.  "  If  he  was  here  when  we 
came  in  I  don't  understand  how  we  missed 
seeing  his  car." 

207 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

"He  got  in  after  we  did;  the  car  is  in  the 
hotel  barn." 

"Where's  Vannuccini,  then?" 

An  ominous  grimness  came  into  the  older 
man's  face.  "He's  here  in  town;  been  here 
since  noon.  Jarvis  says  they  broke  a  radius 
rod  forty  miles  down  the  line.  Vannuccini 
left  Jarvis  to  make  repairs  and  he  came  in  by 
rail.  When  are  you  going  to  leave  here?  " 

The  thought  flashed  into  Jerry's  mind  that 
there  might  be  an  ulterior  motive  behind  the 
question,  and  his  hesitation  must  have  been  ap 
parent,  for  Mr.  Albright  spoke  up  testily: 

"  I  want  to  know,  because  I'm  going  along 
with  you ! " 

Jerry's  astonishment  showed  in  his  face  and 
Hiram  D.  seemed  to  feel  around  irritably  for 
an  explanation.  As  none  came  he  decided  on 
a  measure  of  frankness.  For  certain  reasons, 
he  did  not  want  Vannuccini  to  know  he  was  in 
the  West  at  all.  He  could  depend  on  Jarvis, 
who  was  an  old  employee  of  his,  to  keep  his 
mouth  shut,  so  it  was  not  likely  Vannuccini 
would  know  he  and  Betty  had  left  New  York. 

"Until  I  get  ready  for  him  to  know," 
Betty's  father  added,  with  a  grim  smile. 
"  Now  if  you'll  take  me  along  with  you,  what 
time  shall  we  leave?" 

208 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

Jerry  restrained  a  desire  to  grin  widely,  and 
told  him  five  in  the  morning. 

"  Hadn't  you  better  make  it  four?"  Hiram 
turned  around  at  the  door  to  ask.  "  Get  a 
better  start,  you  know,"  he  added. 

'  The  earlier  the  better,"  Jerry  agreed,  and 
was  preparing  for  sleep,  when  Sid  rushed  in. 

"I've  seen  Vannuccini!"  he  said.  "I  left 
the  hall  fifteen  minutes  after  you  did  and  the 
first  people  I  put  my  eye  on  when  I  got  into 
the  street  was  Hiram  D.  and  Jarvis.  They 
were  headed  down  the  street  and  I  piked  after 
them.  They  had  a  look  in  at  one  of  those 
gilded-front  palaces  and  then  they  went  on.  I 
said  to  myself  I  might  as  well  have  a  look,  too. 
Around  one  table  the  fellows  were  four  deep 
a-shooting  craps,  and  I  elbowed  in  far  enough 
to  see  the  center  of  attraction  was  Vannuccini, 
all  right." 

"Did  he  see  you?" 

"See  me?  He  was  blind  to  everything  but 
the  nifty  little  pile  of  blues  he  raked  in  regu 
larly!  Someone  told  me  he'd  been  playing 
since  one  o'clock.  I  wonder  what  Hiram  D. 
thinks  of  Monte  now?" 

"  I  think  I  know,"  Jerry  laughed.  "  Dig 
out,  now,  and  let  me  sleep.  Four  in  the  morn 
ing,  sharp." 

209 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

It  was  eight  in  the  morning  when  Betty 
struggled  awake  with  the  consciousness  that 
she  was  missing  something.  The  premonition 
deepened  to  certainty  when  she  knocked  at  her 
father's  door  and  got  no  answer.  She  hurried 
down  to  the  office  and  was  handed  a  note  by 
the  clerk.  It  ran: 

4  A.  M. 
Dear  Betty: 

Take  eleven  o'clock  train  for  Pocatello.  I 
have  directed  the  clerk  to  wire  the  Davis  House 
in  Pocatello  to  have  a  porter  meet  you  at  the 
train,  so  you'll  be  all  right.  Wait  for  me  at 
the  hotel.  Expect  to  get  in  there  before  dark. 
Am  just  off  with  Jerry. — Dad. 

It  was  an  indignant  young  woman  who  ate 
a  solitary  breakfast  after  reading  this  note; 
and  the  more  she  reflected  the  more  indignant 
she  became.  To  be  sent  on  by  rail  like  a  piece 
of  baggage !  It  was  an  affront ! 

"  If  I  had  enough  money  I'd  go  straight 
home  and  let  them  see  how  they  would  like  it 
without  me!"  she  said  to  herself,  and  in  her 
abstraction  she  walked  out  of  the  dining-room 
and  almost  into  the  arms  of  Signer  Vannuc- 
cini. 

210 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

There  is  no  word  which  adequately  describes 
the  expression  on  the  Signer's  mobile  face 
when  he  recognized  Betty.  If  he  had  not  been 
so  quick  at  assuming  a  look  of  rapture,  one 
would  have  said  he  appeared  for  an  instant 
taken  aback.  But  he  rallied  finely.  He  de 
clared  his  gratification  was  only  equaled  by 
his  surprise  at  finding  Miss  Albright  in  this 
out-of-the-way  spot.  But  while  he  talked  he 
was  plainly  looking  behind  her  for  someone. 

"  My  father  and  I  are  en  route  to  Port 
land,"  she  explained. 

"Then  I  shall  have  the  pleasure  of  seeing 
your  father  before  I  leave?" 

"No,  I  think  not,"  Betty  laughed,  "my 
father  has  deserted  me  in  the  most  shameless 
fashion.  He  went  on  this  morning  in  Jerry 
Fleming's  car." 

The  Signer  might  well  have  said  "The 
Devil!"  aloud,  for  that  is  the  way  he  looked. 
But  he  only  remarked  that  was  indeed  an  honor 
for  Mr.  Fleming,  and  what  was  Miss  Albright 
going  to  do  now? 

"  I  suppose  I  shall  tag  along  in  a  stuffy 
train,"  Betty  sighed.  And  then,  just  as  the 
playwright  manages  the  entrance  of  the  temp 
ter  at  exactly  the  right  moment,  Vannuccini 
stepped  aside  and  revealed  his  car  at  the  door. 

211 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

It  was  obviously  pawing  the  earth  preparatory 
to  a  glorious  flight  through  the  clear  morning 
air ;  it  was  enticingly  ready,  as  if  he  had  rubbed 
a  magic  lamp  and  conjured  it  up;  it  was  in 
Betty's  eyes  altogether  irresistible! 

"Would  you  like  to  overtake  your  father?" 
Vannuccini  suggested  cleverly. 

Betty  did  not  allow  herself  to  reflect ;  if  she 
had  she  would  have  been  waiting  an  hour  later 
for  the  eleven  o'clock  train,  instead  of  gliding 
away  from  the  last  houses  of  Montpelier  in  a 
big  red  motor  car  with  the  trail  to  Pocatello 
stretching  out  before  her,  the  mountains  catch 
ing  the  sun,  the  whole  morning  world  smiling 
before  them,  and  in  her  heart  a  wonderful, 
scared  delight  at  her  own  daring. 


CHAPTER   XVIII 

WHILE  Betty  was  eating  her  break 
fast  in  the  hotel  at  Montpelier 
Fleming  was  the  unwilling  par 
ticipant  in  an  adventure  that  came  unpleas 
antly  near  to  ending  abruptly  his  earthly  ca 
reer.  From  Montpelier  westward  along  the 
Bear  River  to  Soda  Springs  the  road  twists 
amidst  most  impressive  and  beautiful  moun 
tain  scenery.  Often  it  winds  a  perilous  way 
around  the  face  of  some  projecting  rock,  or 
plunges  unexpectedly  to  the  shadows  of  a  for 
bidding  pass.  Between  are  valleys,  made  fer 
tile  by  irrigation,  but  presenting  difficulties 
of  their  own,  for  each  irrigation  ditch  is  from 
six  to  ten  feet  wide  and  eighteen  inches  deep, 
and  each  has  to  be  forded.  This  made  their 
progress  slow,  and  when  they  struck  the  steep 
grades  between  Soda  Springs  and  McCam- 
mon  the  Nero,  geared  low  as  it  was,  could 
only  take  them  on  low  speed. 

Just  west  of  Soda  Springs  is  a  steep  rocky 
pass,  with  a  perpendicular  wall  on  the  right 
and  an  unguarded  drop  of  several  hundred 

213 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

feet  on  the  left.  To  lighten  the  labor  of  the 
car  as  much  as  possible  Mr.  Albright  and  Sid 
walked  up  the  pass.  In  places  the  trail  resem 
bled  rough  steps,  with  its  out-cropping  rocks, 
and  up  this  difficult  way  the  car  was  slowly 
climbing  when,  just  as  the  rear  wheels  struck 
an  unusually  obtrusive  rock,  the  engine,  forced 
beyond  its  endurance,  began  to  "  die."  Flem 
ing  threw  out  the  clutch,  and  as  the  car 
stopped  and  then  started  to  back,  he  pushed 
down  hard  on  the  foot  brake.  The  brake  lin 
ings,  worn  out  and  burned  by  continuous 
mountain  work,  refused  to  hold  on  the  forty- 
per-cent.  grade,  and  the  car  continued  to  back, 
gaining  speed  each  instant.  The  sprags,  which 
might  have  prevented  the  descent,  had  been  un 
coupled  earlier  in  the  day  to  pry  a  boulder  from 
the  trail,  and  Fleming  could  only  curse  his  own 
carelessness  in  not  replacing  them.  As  a  last 
resource  he  seized  the  lever  and  threw  in  the 
low  speed  clutch. 

This  was  too  much  for  the  badly  worn  chain 
to  stand,  and  it  snapped. 

Mr.  Albright  and  Sid  saw  what  had  hap 
pened.  With  one  impulse  they  turned  and 
fled  for  their  lives  down  the  road.  On  that 
narrow  trail,  with  a  wall  of  rock  on  one  hand 
and  a  precipice  on  the  other,  it  was  not  wise  to 

214 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

stand  still  and  watch  the  downward  rush  of  a 
runaway  motor  car.  Sid  was  ahead  and  his 
quick  eye  saw  a  ledge  of  rock  standing  a  little 
way  out  from  the  wall  to  their  left.  He  scram 
bled  upon  it  and  pulled  Betty's  father  after 
him.  They  were  barely  in  time,  for  the  car, 
freed  from  all  restraint,  had  doubled  its  speed, 
and  Sid,  his  voice  shrill  with  terror,  called  out 
to  Fleming  to  jump. 

But  Fleming  was  coolly  watching  the  road 
over  his  shoulder.  Steering  backward  he  was 
trying  to  keep  the  car  on  the  trail  till  he  reached 
the  level.  He  was  aware  of  the  horrified  faces 
of  the  two  men  on  their  shelf  of  safety,  and  in 
spite  of  his  peril  the  amusing  thought  crossed 
his  mind  that  Hiram  D.  was  certainly  getting 
"limbered  up"!  The  next  instant  he  had 
caught  sight  of  a  rock  projecting  perhaps  a 
foot  into  the  trail.  His  decision  came  imme 
diately  ;  he  steered  the  car  squarely  into  it  with 
the  right  rear  wheel. 

The  shock  threw  him  backward  almost  into 
the  tonneau,  and  when  he  recovered  his  balance 
he  found  himself  gazing  down  on  the  stunted 
herbage  at  the  bottom  of  a  two-hundred-foot 
canyon.  For  the  car,  with  one  rear  wheel 
jammed  against  the  rock,  had  waltzed  half 
around,  and  it  now  hung  with  its  front  wheels 

215 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

over  the  cliff.  Very  gingerly,  but  not  wasting 
any  time  over  it,  Jerry  climbed  out.  Then  he 
drew  a  long  breath  and  called  out  to  Hiram 
D.,  who  was  hurrying  down  the  trail : 

"  See  the  advantage  of  an  engine  in  the  mid 
dle — front  wheels  over  the  cliff  and  a  nice 
balance  kept!" 

It  took  them  the  rest  of  the  morning  to  jack 
up  the  car  and  swing  it  back  to  the  trail;  the 
broken  chain  had  also  to  be  repaired.  In  the 
final  journey  up  the  pass  Fleming  drove  the 
car  and  Sid  ran  behind  with  a  huge  stone  to 
block  the  wheels  the  instant  the  engine  began 
to  falter.  Mr.  Albright  trudged — very  will 
ingly.  He  could  not  be  induced  to  ride  until 
they  had  left  the  pass,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that 
the  unusual  exertion  in  that  high  altitude  made 
him  puff  till  he  was  purple  in  the  face. 

For  the  rest  of  the  day  they  ran  without 
special  incident  through  some  of  the  most  beau 
tiful  mountain  scenery  in  the  world.  Oc 
casionally  a  snowy  peak  caught  the  sun;  they 
made  their  way  between  massive  lava  forma 
tions,  grotesquely  shaped  like  goblin  sentinels 
of  the  trail ;  on  which  scores  of  eagles  perched, 
quite  unafraid,  as  if  they  knew  themselves  pro 
tected  by  the  law. 

Houses  were  infrequent.  They  rode  through 
216 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

an  apparently  deserted  country  except  for  an 
occasional  sheep  outfit  or  emigrant's  wagon. 
Prospectors  have  left  their  mark  on  the  moun 
tain  sides — hastily  dug  holes,  like  the  work  of 
a  rabbit  or  badger,  while  two  or  three  deserted 
villages,  their  houses  the  homes  of  snakes  and 
small  animals,  bear  witness  to  the  restless,  con 
suming  haste  of  the  gold-seeker.  Now  and 
then,  along  the  railroad,  is  a  general  store,  in 
cluding  in  its  stock  everything  from  a  paper 
of  pins  to  a  coffin.  The  storekeeper  himself 
is  often  hotel  proprietor,  chemist,  and  under 
taker  in  one.  Often  to  these  industries  he  adds 
a  saloon  with  a  faro  table  and  roulette  wheel, 
and  it  was  in  a  place  of  this  kind  that  Fleming 
found  gasolene  a  dollar  a  gallon  and  tomatoes 
ninety  cents  a  can. 

The  last  two  miles  of  their  run  into  Pocatello 
lay  through  the  Bannock  Indian  reservation; 
and  in  the  main  street  of  that  city  Sid  Johns 
ton  had  his  first  sight  of  the  Red  Man  in  all 
his  painted  glory.  It  was  barely  an  hour  after 
their  arrival  that  Fleming  found  him  buying 
an  Indian  belt  cunningly  embroidered  in  the 
latest  Bannock  fashion.  Sid  would  fain  have 
conveyed  the  impression  that  it  was  a  belt  for 
masculine  wear,  but  Fleming  remarked  that  it 
was  very  small.  Sid  looked  embarrassed — an 

217 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

unusual  act  of  grace! — and  admitted  that  he 
was  buying  it  to  send  to  Jacinta. 

;'  Kind  of  reminded  me  of  her,"  he  said, 
growing  redder.  Fleming  restrained  a  whistle, 
but  neither  of  them  had  time  to  say  anything 
more  on  that  subject,  for  down  the  street  after 
them  came  Mr.  Albright,  breathless  from  hur 
rying  and  with  a  distracted  look  in  his  eyes. 

"Betty  isn't  at  the  hotel!"  he  cried.  "I 
wired  Montpelier  and  they  returned  that  she 
had  left  there  at  eight-thirty  in  a  red  automo 
bile!" 

Fleming's  lips  set  themselves,  in  a  straight 
line.  With  Vannuccini!  "He  should  have 
overtaken  us,  for  we  lost  four  hours  getting 
the  car  back  on  the  trail,"  he  said. 

;' There's  another  road  ten  or  fifteen  miles 
south  of  the  trail  we  took;  he  probably  fol 
lowed  that  one,"  said  Sid. 

Betty's  father  and  Betty's  suitor  looked  at 
each  other  with  haggard  brows;  they  had  at 
last  a  mutual  sympathy. 

:<  If  I  ever  get  her  back  to  New  York,'* 
groaned  her  father,  "she'll  never  get  into  an 
automobile  again." 

''  I  might  take  the  car  and  go  back  and  look 
for  them,"  Jerry  said.  "But  no — that's  no 
use,  for  I  don't  know  what  route  he's  taken. 

218 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

Hang  it  all!  what  right  had  he  got  to 

he  stopped  short,  listening.  There  was  the 
near-by,  unmistakable  hum  of  a  motor  car  ap 
proaching.  Even  as  they  looked  at  each  other 
Vannuccini's  big  red  Superba  passed  them  and 
drew  up  amidst  the  absorbed  attention  of  every 
one  in  sight,  at  the  door  of  the  hotel  near  by. 

Fleming  and  Mr.  Albright  hastened  their 
footsteps  and  were  thus  just  in  time  to  greet 
Betty  with  countenances  of  entire  disapproval. 
She  saw  them  coming  and  she  made  an  effort 
to  forestall  criticism  by  a  light-hearted  greet 
ing.  The  usual  knot  of  interested  citizens  was 
gathering  and  Fleming  hastened  to  make  a 
way  for  her  through  the  crowd  into  the  hotel. 
He  could  see  that  she  was  very  pale  and  that 
she  was  not  as  gay  as  the  tone  of  her  greeting. 
He  noticed  also  that  when  she  left  the  car  she 
ignored  Vannuccini's  hand;  she  had  said 
"  Good-by  "  when  he  said  "  Good-night." 

"  What  in  heaven's  name  possessed  you  to  do 
such  a  thing,  Betty?"  her  father  began  storm- 
ily,  as  he  followed  them  into  the  hotel  parlor. 

Betty  leaned  wearily  against  the  marble  top 
table  that  adorned  the  center  of  the  room. 

"  Please,  Dad,  don't  scold  me,"  she  said  with 
a  quiver  in  her  voice.  "I'm  so  tired  and — and 
upset.  I  know  I  shouldn't  have  done  it,  but 

21.Q 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

the  car  was  there  all  ready,  and  I  didn't  like 
it  the  way  you'd  left  me,  and  there  was  Jarvis, 
that  I'd  known  all  my  life — and  I  thought  it 
would  be  all  right.  Mr.  Vannuccini  said  he'd 
overtake  you  before  noon.  I  really  thought  he 
could— but  he  didn't." 

"  He  should  have  overtaken  us,"  said  Jerry 
sternly,  "  for  we  lost  four  hours  near  Soda 
Springs." 

"That's  what  I  say!"  Betty's  father  broke 
in.  "What  was  he  doing?  " 

"Did  you  say  Soda  Springs?"  Betty  ex 
claimed.  "  See  here,  did  you  back  down  a  hill 
and  nearly  go  over  a  cliff?" 

'  Yes!  how  did  you  know?  " 

"We  stopped  in  Soda  Springs  for  water 
and  a  young  fellow  on  a  white  pony  told  us 
about  your  car  running  away  down  hill.  He 
had  seen  the  whole  thing  from  the  bottom  of 
the  pass.  Do  you  remember  passing  him? " 

Fleming  said  he  remembered  him,  and  Betty 
went  on  to  tell  how  she  had  expected  every  mile 
to  see  the  blue  car  ahead  of  them. 

"  I  couldn't  understand  why  we  didn't  catch 
up,  for  the  boy  said  you  were  only  four  miles 
farther  on  and  your  car  seemed  to  be  stuck. 
Mr.  Vannuccini  asked  the  boy  particularly 
about  which  trail  to  take " 

220 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

"And  then  he  took  the  other  one,"  Jerry  fin 
ished  dryly. 

But  Betty  was  not  inclined  to  discuss  the 
subject  further.  She  seemed  dispirited  and 
tired.  She  told  her  father  she  was  sorry  he 
had  been  worried  on  her  account,  with  such  un 
usual  meekness  that  the  old  gentleman  was  en 
tirely  disarmed  and  said  he  was  afraid  she  was 
going  to  be  ill.  She  reassured  him  on  that 
point,  but  added,  sadly: 

"  I  don't  think  I  care  about  automobiling, 
any  more — not  for  a  long  time,  anyway.  I 
want  something  to  eat  and  then  I'm  going  to 
turn  in." 

Vannuccini  did  not  appear  in  the  dining- 
room,  and  they  concluded  he  had  gone  to 
another  hotel.  Betty  was  very  silent  during 
the  meal.  Fleming  himself  had  little  to  say. 
He  had  been  more  hurt  than  he  cared  to  show 
by  Betty's  escapade  and  he  felt  that  some 
slight  sign  of  contrition  on  her  part  was  his 
due,  but  none  was  forthcoming.  She  accepted 
without  a  demur  her  father's  plan  to  take  the 
train  next  day  for  Portland. 

From  Pocatello  Fleming's  route  would  leave 
the  main  branch  of  the  Oregon  Short  Line  and 
run  across  the  lava  desert  to  Hailey  and  on  to 
Boise  City.  It  was  far  from  advisable  that 

221 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

Betty  and  her  father  should  follow  him  into  a 
district  so  far  from  the  railroad;  and  for  her 
part  Betty  seemed  quite  resigned  to  the  tamer 
means  of  locomotion. 

It  was  only  when  they  were  saying  their 
good-nights  and  good-bys  that  she  smiled  at 
him  with  something  of  the  kindness  she  had 
shown  him  the  day  they  had  carried  her  father 
through  Granger.  They  were  standing  at  the 
foot  of  the  stairs  and,  as  her  father  went  off 
to  inquire  about  trains,  she  turned  to  Jerry 
with  her  old  frankness. 

'  The  Superba  can't  climb  hills  like  your  car, 
Jerry,"  she  said.  "  It's  a  wonder  on  good,  level 
roads,  but  it's  like  moving  a  man-of-war  to 
get  it  out  of  an  irrigation  ditch,  and  there's  too 
much  weight  up  in  front  to  rush  them  the 
way  you  do! " 

Jerry  was  silent.  Betty  looked  up  at  him 
keenly. 

'You  don't  like  it — what  I  did  to-day,  do 
you,  Jerry?" 

He  looked  down  at  her  very  soberly.  "  No, 
I  don't,  Betty.  I  never  like  you  to  do  what 
doesn't  seem  to — to  suit  your  kind  of  a  girl." 

To  his  surprise  she  made  a  gesture  toward  an 
open  door  near  them  which  led  to  a  side  veran 
dah.  '  Why  did  my  accepting  Mr.  Vannuc- 

222 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

cini's  invitation  to  ride  with  him  seem  unlike 
me? "  she  asked,  as  they  walked  to  the  other  end 
of  the  deserted  gallery. 

"Well,  in  the  first  place  you  put  yourself 
in  the  way  to  be  misunderstood." 

"  But  there  was  Jarvis ! " 
'  Yes,  I  know;  but  you  don't  know  Vannuc- 
cini  very  well;  he  is  a  foreigner,  not  used  to 
our  ways — he  might  misunderstand — 

She  nodded.  "  He  did  misunderstand,"  she 
said,  in  a  low  voice. 

Jerry  uttered  an  exclamation  of  anger,  but 
she  held  up  her  hand.  "  Oh,  it  is  what  I  de 
served!  But  I  won't  tell  Dad;  he's  so  quick 
tempered.  You  see,  I  suspected  Vannuccini 
took  the  wrong  trail  at  Soda  Springs,  for  Jar- 
vis  leaned  over  from  the  tonneau,  as  if  to  cor 
rect  him,  and  he  got  such  a  glare  for  his  pains 
that  he  kept  still.  It  set  me  to  thinking,  then, 
and  before  noon  I  had  made  up  my  mind  we 
were  not  going  to  overtake  you.  I  expressed 
some  surprise  and  Mr.  Vannuccini  hinted  that 
he  had  not  supposed  I  really  wanted  to  catch  up 
with  you! — It — it  was — well,  horrid!  Not  so 
much  anything  he  said,  but  I  felt  there  was  a 
difference  in  his  attitude,  someway.  If  it  hadn't 
been  for  good  old  Jarvis,  I  should  have  been 
afraid,  and  that's  the  truth!" 

223 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

She  drew  a  long  breath  as  if  the  confession 
had  lightened  her  heart. 

"  Please  don't  say  anything,"  she  added  as 
she  caught  a  glimpse  of  Jerry's  indignant  face. 
"  I  want  Dad  to  find  out  everything  about  our 
Italian  friend  for  himself.  I  don't  feel  like 
discussing  him  with  father,  someway.  I  think 
I'm  rather  disillusioned,  and — and  it  hurts  to 
be  disillusioned,  you  know." 

'  Yes,  I  know,"  he  said  gravely. 

She  glanced  up  at  him  quickly.  "Are  you 
disillusioned,  with  me,  Jerry?  I  shouldn't 
blame  you  if  you  were,  but  I  don't  want  you 
to  be.  To-day  I've  learned—  she  paused 
and  a  flush  passed  over  her  face,  as  if  the  words 
were  difficult—  "  I  have  learned  to  appreciate 
you.  I  might  have  lived  all  my  life  in  the  East 
and  thought  you  a  nice,  amusing  boy;  but  just 
these  last  few  days  have  made  me  feel  as  if  I 
want  to  apologize  to  you.  There — "  she 
finished  with  a  little  laugh — "  There  is  my  hand 
on  the  apology! " 

He  looked  at  her  hand  as  it  lay  in  his  brown, 
hard  palm;  but  only  for  an  instant.  It  was 
such  a  sweet,  frank  little  hand  that  it  demanded 
something  more  than  calm  contemplation.  He 
put  his  other  hand  over  it. 

"  Betty,  Betty! "  he  whispered,  "you  mustn't 

224 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

apologize  to  me.  Whatever  you  do  is  right — 
and  I  love  you!" 

But  she  drew  back  a  little  at  that.  "  No,  you 
must  not  say  that.  This  morning,  when  I 
started  out  with  Mr.  Vannuccini,  I  knew  he 
was  capable  of  a  mean  act  toward  you,  but  I 
went  just  the  same.  He  wired  me  a  lie  about 
you  and  Jacinta,  and  I  believed  it — I  haven't 
been  a  good  friend,  Jerry,  and  I  won't  have 
you  thinking  I  am  anything  but  a  self-willed, 
reckless— 

But  she  never  finished  that  sentence,  for 
something  in  her  uplifted  face  gave  him  the 
courage  he  should  have  had  before.  He  was 
no  longer  a  boy  to  be  abashed  by  her  laughter ; 
he  was  a  man  deeply  in  love,  and  he  knew  the 
moment  had  come  when  he  must  face  the  issue 
for  the  last  time. 

"Betty,  look  at  me,"  he  said  as  he  caught 
her  two  hands  between  his  own;  "you  are  the 
one  girl  in  the  world,  to  me — the  sweetest,  the 
best.  I  love  you,  I  don't  need  to  tell  you  that, 
I  don't  care  what  lies  may  have  been  told 
about  me  if  you  don't  believe  them,  dear.  But 
I  can't  wait  any  longer.  I  must  know  one 
thing.  Do  you — care  for  me,  like  that,  the 
least  little  bit? " 

She  did  not  answer  at  once,  but  there  was 

225 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

a  little  break  in  her  voice  as  she  said:  "If 
you'll  let  my  hands  go — please;  I  can't  think 
without  my  hands— 

And  then  as  they  fluttered  out  of  his  grasp 
he  gained  a  despairing  courage.  He  drew 
her  toward  him  as  he  said: 

"  Betty,  Betty,  if  you  have  to  think  about 
it  you  don't  love  me— 

He  could  not  believe  that  she  had  not  re 
buffed  him,  that  she  did  not  slip  away  from 
him  with  her  old  laugh ;  but  a  sort  of  incredu 
lous  rapture  swept  him  when  she  looked  up 
at  him  with  shining,  wondering  eyes. 

"I  do  care — I  love  you,  Jerry.  You've 
won!"  she  whispered. 

Inside  the  hotel  Betty's  father  wandered 
around  exasperatedly.  He  said  to  himself 
that  Betty  ought  to  be  in  bed;  where  she  had 
gone  to  he  couldn't  make  out.  And  Sid  was 
looking  for  Fleming.  He  wanted  to  know  at 
what  hour  they  would  start  in  the  morning 
and,  in  the  meantime,  he  was  yawning  cavern- 
like  up  and  down  the  place.  He  and  Betty's 
father  were  a  regular  chorus  of  disapproval; 
they  looked  everywhere,  but  they  did  not  know 
about  the  little  verandah.  Which  was  just  as 

226 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

well,  for  there  was  an  amazing  number  of  last 
words  to  be  said. 

"  You've  just  got  to  beat  him,  now,  Jerry 
dear,"  Betty  said  for  the  fifth  time. 

"I  know  it.  I'll  be  a  pauper  if  I  don't; 
have  to  begin  all  over  again ;  don't  know  when 
we  could  get  married  in  that  case 

"  And  Dad  would  be  another  lion  in  the 
way.  If  you  lose  this  race  though,  he's  had 
a  fair  sample  of  your  difficulties  now.  But 
you  won't  lose,  you  mustn't!  I  must  give  you 
something  for  good  luck.  Here — the  very 
thing!  my  scarab." 

They  discovered  that  the  green  scarab  would 
not  go  over  the  second  joint  of  his  little  finger, 
so  it  was  carefully  anchored  to  his  watch  chain. 
This  took  time,  and  then  there  was  the  matter 
of  telegrams  to  be  arranged.  Fleming  prom 
ised  to  wire  her  from  Boise,  Burns  and  Prine- 
ville  to  the  Hotel  Portland.  There  was  some 
unavoidable  lingering  over  these  details,  and 
when  they  finally  sauntered  inside  with  a  finely 
casual  air,  they  were  met  by  Hiram  D.  Al 
bright  and  Sid  in  a  state  which  Betty  described 
as  "  foaming  over." 

But  nothing  mattered  to  Fleming.  He 
watched  Betty  as  she  ran  up  the  stairs  and 

227 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

then  turned  to  call  back  "  Good  luck!  "  and  he 
felt  certain  no  better  luck  could  befall  him. 
But  all  the  same  he  was  going  to  make  the 
great  effort  of  his  life  in  the  next  few  days. 
He  threw  back  his  shoulders  and  said: 

"  Four  o'clock  in  the  morning,  Sid — or  sup 
pose  we  make  it  three?  " 


228 


CHAPTER   XIX 

A  Fleming  drove  silently  out  of  Poca- 
tello,  he  acknowledged  that  the  black 
hour  before  the  dawn  is  not  the  most 
inspiring  time  to  begin  the  day's  work.  But 
he  had  spent  an  hour  before  he  went  to  bed 
poring  over  his  map  and  he  determined,  if  pos 
sible,  to  make  Cottonwood  ranch  that  night. 
The  ranch,  famous  over  half  the  State  for  its 
hospitality,  lay  a  hundred  miles  from  Black- 
foot,  straight  across  the  desert.  In  order  to 
gain  its  shelter  before  night,  he  must  leave 
Black  foot,  twenty-five  miles  to  the  north  of 
Pocatello,  by  eight. 

But  the  best-laid  route  of  the  motorist  is 
apt  to  gang  agley.  It  was  entirely  the  fault 
of  a  stretch  of  sand  and  an  Indian  cow- 
puncher,  who  could  make  himself  plain  only 
in  choice  Bannock  talk.  The  sand  they  en 
countered  soon  after  daylight,  beyond  Ross 
Forks.  It  proved  no  obstacle  whatever,  when 
they  had  attacked  it  with  their  sand-tires;  but, 
somewhere  in  the  middle  of  it,  Fleming  lost 
the  trail  and  wandered  off  on  a  deceptive  side- 
issue  of  the  main  road,  which  lured  him  on  and 

229 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

then  left  him  abruptly,  without  a  landmark 
to  hint  his  position. 

For  an  hour  they  circled  hungrily  (having 
banked  on  breakfast  in  Blackfoot)  among  a 
maze  of  hills,  big  and  little,  and,  just  as  it  oc 
curred  to  them  that  their  predicament  was 
really  serious,  they  sighted  a  sheep  outfit, 
hailed  it,  and  learned  that,  if  they  wanted  to 
reach  Blackfoot,  they  must  cut  across  coun 
try  twenty  miles  to  the  northeast.  This 
sounded  simple,  but,  in  reality,  proved  to  be 
like  driving  through  a  gigantic  maze.  They 
had  to  wind  their  way  among  innumerable 
hills,  until  they  lost  all  sense  of  direction,  and 
finally  were  forced  to  fall  back  on  the  com 
pass. 

At  noon  they  hailed  with  joy  a  tiny  settle 
ment.  They  descended  upon  it  and  found  it 
was  a  Mormon  village  called  Moreland.  The 
first  woman  they  met  on  the  one  street  of  the 
little  town  was  simply  attired  in  a  blouse  and 
a  pair  of  blue  jean  overalls.  She  stared  at 
their  car  with  the  frank  curiosity  everyone  else 
was  showing;  but  exhibited  no  inclination  to 
scamper  behind  anything.  Evidently  she  had 
forgotten  the  blue  jean  part  of  her  attire. 
Presently  another  woman  similarly  dressed 
appeared  in  a  near-by  doorway,  and  then  two 

230 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

girls,  arm  in  arm,  came  down  the  street.  They 
were  also  in  overalls,  and  Sid  could  contain  his 
curiosity  no  longer.  He  hailed  the  next  man 
they  met  and  was  informed  that  Moreland  is 
a  beet  sugar  town  and  all  the  women  work  in 
the  beet  fields.  For  convenience  sake  the  over 
all  had  been  adopted  as  the  correct  thing  in 
working  dress. 

They  were  invited  to  dinner  by  a  patriarch 
with  a  numerous  family.  It  was  an  austere 
and  unsympathetic  meal,  preceded  by  an  end 
less  prayer  and  unenlivened  by  such  unneces 
sary  concessions  to  the  flesh  as  coffee  or  an 
afternoon  pipe.  They  were  told  that  Black- 
foot  lay  to  the  east  some  twenty  miles.  In 
their  wanderings  they  had  circled  around  the 
Indian  town  and  there  was  plainly  nothing  to 
be  gained  in  going  back  to  it.  With  gallons 
of  gasolene  and  their  replenished  water  tanks, 
why  not  strike  across  the  desert  to  Cotton- 
wood  ranch?  It  lay  seventy  miles  west,  a 
tiny  oasis  in  the  Great  Snake  River  desert. 
Almost  to  a  certainty  they  knew  Vannuccini 
had  by  this  time  left  Pocatello.  Until  he  ran 
into  the  lava  district  he  would  find  the  roads, 
with  their  rocky  foundations,  exactly  of  the 
sort  on  which  his  car,  as  Betty  had  said,  was 
"  wonderful."  Obviously  then  it  was  no  time 

231 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

to  be  prudent.  At  one  o'clock  they  left  their 
Mormon  friends  behind  and  had  launched 
themselves  on  the  plains. 

Out  of  Moreland  they  ran  for  half  an  hour 
through  what  is  known  as  the  "  Rabbit  Coun 
try."  Rabbits  fled  in  front  of  them  and  scur 
ried  away  to  the  right  and  to  the  left  of  them. 
The  face  of  the  country  was  flecked  with  bits 
of  rabbit  fur  from  the  last  rabbit  drive,  and 
every  farmer  they  met  had  his  grievous  story 
to  tell  of  the  pest,  which  has  become  as  one  of 
the  plagues  of  Egypt  in  that  section  of  Idaho. 
Then  even  the  rabbit  is  left  behind  and  the 
desert  begins. 

From  Lost  River  on  the  north,  to  the 'Great 
Snake  on  the  south,  stretches  this  waste  of 
lava.  For  a  hundred  miles  there  is  only  one 
water  hole.  Wild  cattle  and  wild  horses  sweep 
over  this  great  plain.  Scorpions  dart  in  and 
out  under  the  lava  rocks  and  the  familiar 
rattlesnake  gives  way  to  the  "  side-winder " 
variety.  In  the  mountains,  which  stretch 
away  to  the  north  and  west  like  a  shadowy 
wall,  are  silvertip  bear  and  mountain  horses. 

Thirty-five  miles  west  of  Moreland  they 
sighted  the  two  buttes,  Big  Butte  and  Middle 
Butte,  between  which  is  the  ranch  of  "Big 
Jim"  Murray,  famous  as  an  Indian  fighter 

232 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

and  scout  for  a  long  line  of  fighting  generals, 
from  Custer  to  Miles.  From  the  top  of  Big 
Butte  he  has  piped  a  mountain  spring  five 
miles  to  his  ranch,  and  this  precious  fluid  he  dis 
penses  to  the  followers  of  the  trail  at  twenty- 
five  cents  a  pail.  The  Murrays,  thirty-five 
miles  from  the  nearest  neighbor,  received 
Fleming  and  Sid  with  the  most  genuine  hos 
pitality;  they  were  ready  to  give  away  even 
water  with  a  lavish  hand.  But  Fleming 
looked  at  his  tanks  and  decided  he  had  enough 
to  carry  them  across  to  Cottonwood.  He  did 
not  care  to  add  a  pound  to  the  weight  he  al 
ready  carried;  but,  later  in  the  day,  he  was  to 
realize  what  it  means  to  run  out  of  water  in 
that  arid  region. 

For,  just  before  sunset,  twenty  miles  be 
yond  Jim  Murray's  ranch  and  half  way  to 
Cottonwood,  they  picked  up  the  trail  from 
Arco,  and,  in  the  lava  dust  of  this  trail,  were 
the  tire  tracks  of  the  Superba.  For  a  moment 
Fleming  felt  stunned  with  the  surprise  of  this 
discovery.  He  had  been  so  absolutely  confi 
dent  Vannuccini  was  behind  them  that  he  could 
not  believe  in  the  evidence  before  him  until 
they  rounded  a  crater-like  formation  and 
caught  the  flash  of  the  sun  on  the  Italian's 
car,  not  more  than  a  mile  and  a  half  ahead. 

233 


THE    CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

Sid,  who  maintained  a  disconsolate  silence 
from  the  moment  they  ran  across  the  Su- 
perba's  tire  marks,  suddenly  leaned  over  the 
dash  and  pointed  out  a  line  of  moisture  al 
ready  drying  in  the  heat  of  the  sun. 

"  By  George !  his  radiator's  leaking,"  he  ex 
claimed,  "  and  leaking  bad,  too." 

The  occupants  of  the  red  car  had  evidently 
discovered  their  mishap,  for  they  had  stopped 
and,  as  Jerry  overtook  them,  Jarvis,  the  me 
chanic,  was  examining  his  radiator  with  an 
anxious  face.  A  third  man  had  dismounted 
from  the  car.  He  was  a  native,  by  the  dry 
and  burnt  look  of  his  skin  and  the  comfort 
able  hang  of  his  six-shooter.  Sid  made  a  guess 
that  Vannuccini,  who  had  evidently  followed 
the  Arco  trail,  had  picked  up  a  guide  at  Black- 
foot. 

'  They're  going  to  ask  us  for  water,"  Sid 
predicted,  and  he  was  right.  As  they  ranged 
alongside  the  partially  disabled  car,  Vannuc 
cini  saluted  affably. 

"We're  very  fortunate  to  be  overtaken, 
for  you  see"  —with  a  comprehensive  gesture 
— "  our  predicament.  Can  you  let  us  have 
some  water?  I  think  a  gallon  would  take  us 
to — what  is  the  name  of  the  place? — yes, 
Muldoon." 

234. 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

In  the  half  minute  Vannuccini  was  speak 
ing,  an  extraordinary  number  of  thoughts 
crowded  through  Fleming's  mind.  Beyond 
his  greeting  the  night  before  in  Pocatello,  he 
had  not  exchanged  a  word  with  his  rival  since 
they  parted  outside  of  Medicine  Bow.  Van 
nuccini 's  voice  brought  back,  like  a  flash,  that 
moment  and  the  Italian's  "  Permit  me,"  as  he 
took  the  road  ahead  of  the  car  that  had  res 
cued  him.  On  the  top  of  this  memory  crowded 
Betty's  experience  of  yesterday. 

"  How  far  is  it  to  Muldoon?  "  he  asked. 

The  Westerner  squinted  at  the  trail.  "  It's 
a  right  smart  walk  and  a  short  ride.  'Bout 
twelve  miles,  I  make  it." 

Fleming  looked  at  Vannuccini.  "I've  got 
just  about  enough  water  to  get  to  Muldoon — 
and  none  to  give  away,  I'm  afraid." 

It  was  on  his  tongue  to  suggest  an  expedi 
ent  ;  but  human  nature  was  too  strong  for  him. 
He  threw  in  the  clutch  and  glided  away  with 
out  another  look  at  Vannuccini's  astonished 
and  angry  face.  Half  a  mile  further  on  he 
stopped. 

"  No  use,"  he  said.  "  I  can't  do  such  a  dog 
mean  trick  as  that!  Sid,  look  in  the  tonneau 
and  bring  out  that  yellow  bag  near  my  suit 
case.  Yes,  I  know  it's  bran.  No,  I'm  not  go- 

235 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

ing  to  offer  it  to  them  to  eat.  Jump  in  and 
don't  waste  time  staring  at  me  like  a  moon 
struck  idiot." 

Back  to  the  stranded  car  they  went.  Jarvis 
was  preparing  to  go  to  work  at  the  radiator 
with  the  soldering  irons. 

"  Here,"  Fleming  called  curtly;  "  try  this  in 
your  radiator." 

Vannuccini  took  the  bag  as  if  he  suspected 
a  practical  joke,  and  Jarvis  said,  "  Bran!  what 
do  you  do  with  it?  "  in  a  puzzled  tone. 

"What  water  you've  got  in  your  radiator 
is  hot,  isn't  it?  Well,  pour  in  a  handful  of 
that  bran  and  I  think  you  will  find  it  will  help 
you  out,"  Fleming  explained. 

Jarvis  followed  instructions.  Almost  im 
mediately  the  bran  began  to  drip  through  the 
crevices  in  a  half -cooked  state;  in  three  min 
utes  it  had  caked  and  \vas  choking  up  the  leaks 
in  a  surprisingly  effective  manner. 

Fleming  did  not  wait  for  comments.  He 
turned  the  car  and  took  up  the  trail  at  a  lively 
pace. 

"  That's  a  nifty  little  trick,"  Sid  remarked. 
"  It  beats  soldering.  Why,  you've  saved  them 
two  hours,  the  shape  their  radiator  was  in.  Do 
you  think  that  bran  will  hold? " 

"  I've  heard  that  it  will ;  but  I  don't  know 

236 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

from  experience.  Kind  of  hope  that  it  won't; 
now  that  my  conscience  is  satisfied." 

And  Fleming  laughed  with  a  gleam  of  ex 
citement  in  his  eyes.  "Did  you  notice  how  his 
car  was  traveling,  Sid?  It's  just  as  I  said — 
too  heavy,  and  the  balance  is  wrong.  They 
tell  me  the  sand  is  eighteen  inches  deep  part  of 
the  way  through  Oregon.  Now,  if  you  and  I 
don't  get  ourselves  lost  again,  my  boy,  we're 
going  to  show  that  red  wagon  our  heels  the 
rest  of  the  way." 

Sid  said  "  Sure  "  cheerfully.  But  he  looked 
at  the  trail,  winding  everlastingly  among  what 
appeared  to  be  the  craters  of  extinct  volcanoes. 
It  was  such  a  thread-like  clue,  through  such  a 
forbidding  and  baffling  waste,  that  any  predic 
tion  seemed  presumptuous.  If  they  lost  that 
slender  guide,  they  might  wander  for  days 
without  finding  it  again.  The  very  thought 
made  him  thirsty.  He  wiped  the  thick  gray 
dust  from  his  face  and  eyes  and,  as  he  did  so, 
a  turn  in  the  trail  brought  them  within  sight 
of  Muldoon — all  there  was  of  it — a  house  or 
two,  set  down  amidst  lava  hills  and  general 
loneliness. 

There  is  a  mail  in  Muldoon  and  a  post-mis 
tress,  who  receives  and  distributes  it  once  in 
ten  days,  and  she  told  Fleming  that  Cotton- 

237 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

wood  lay  about  eight  miles  west,  "  Straight 
west  and  good  trail." 

He  refilled  his  water  tanks  and  took  up  the 
trail  once  more.  Darkness  had  settled  around 
them — darkness  through  which  hills  were 
looming — when  the  trail  led  them  into  a  little 
valley.  Here,  with  the  mountains  circling 
them  on  three  sides  are  the  half  dozen  log 
buildings  that  make  up  Cottonwood  ranch.  It 
is  a  tiny  oasis,  protected  from  the  desert  by 
the  hills,  unsurveyed  and  untaxed,  made  fer 
tile  by  irrigation  and  rich  in  several  minerals. 
With  the  unusual  sound  of  Fleming's  car,  the 
Drake  family  came  to  the  door.  Like  the 
majority  of  Westerners,  they  had  the  fine  art 
of  simple  hospitality.  Mrs.  Drake  spread  for 
them  a  supper  which  was  as  a  banquet  to  their 
thirst  and  hunger,  and  the  men  of  the  family 
offered  them  a  bear  hunt  if  they  would  stop  a 
couple  of  days. 

But  Fleming  had  cast  himself  for  the  role 
of  the  indefatigable  youth  whose  motto  was 
"Excelsior!"  He  begrudged  the  necessary 
hours  of  sleep;  he  would  like  to  have  gone  on 
all  night.  Before  daylight  next  morning  he 
had  routed  out  Sid,  and  they  oiled  up  and 
filled  their  tanks  and  were  on  the  road  by  sun 
rise. 

238 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

Two  hours  later  they  were  creating  a  sen 
sation  in  Hailey  as  they  drove  up  to  the  Ferris 
House  for  breakfast.  Two  horses,  with  their 
big  fifty-pound  cowboy  saddles,  hitched  in 
front  of  a  restaurant  and  dance  hall,  executed 
a  jig  of  terror  and  then  disappeared  into  the 
landscape,  and  everyone  who  was  stirring  in 
Hailey  ran  to  doors  and  windows.  But  this 
was  a  mild  disturbance  compared  to  the  effect 
the  car  produced  on  a  drove  of  sheep  beyond 
Hailey.  They  were  rounded  up  in  a  cup-like 
valley,  four  thousand  of  them,  circling  about 
slowly  in  a  blinding  cloud  of  dust.  As  the  car 
approached  them,  a  surge  of  terror  struck  the 
entire  woolly  mass  up  the  valley  and,  as  Flem 
ing  looked  back,  the  drovers  were  galloping 
wildly  to  keep  the  band  from  stampeding  to 
the  hills. 

Between  Hailey  and  Boise  the  sand  and 
cinders  through  which  they  had  traveled  the 
day  before  gave  way  to  a  hilly  trail  with  long 
stretches  of  sage  brush  and  lava  rocks.  Some 
times  for  miles  they  followed  it  over  solid  lava 
beds,  as  smooth  as  an  asphalt  pavement,  but 
with  frequent  fissures  in  the  rocky  surface  that 
made  high  speed  dangerous. 

Before  sundown  they  had  made  the  ninety 
miles  to  Boise.  It  was  in  fact  the  best  day 

239 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

they  had  made  for  a  long  time,  in  spite  of  bat 
tery  troubles  which  only  Fleming's  resource 
prevented  from  causing  a  serious  predicament. 

They  were  running  along  at  a  good  speed, 
just  after  their  dinner  at  Canyon  Creek,  when 
they  noticed  that  the  engine  was  losing  power. 
Sid  got  out  and  tested  the  batteries  carefully. 
Then  he  took  off  his  cap  and  scratched  his  head 
despondently. 

"  The  best  I  can  make  my  ammeter  read  is 
four,"  he  said;  "and  it's  fifteen  miles  before 
we  can  get  a  new  set  of  dry  cells.  It  looks  to 
me  as  if  we  were  up  against  it  hard." 

Fleming  looked  at  the  batteries  thought 
fully.  "  I  think  I  know  a  trick  that  will  bring 
us  into  Boise,  even  if  this  set  of  cells  stops 
making  a  spark,"  he  said. 

They  had  not  made  two  miles  farther  when 
his  ingenuity  was  put  to  the  test;  for  the  en 
gine,  after  numerous  missings,  suddenly  struck 
work,  and,  before  Fleming  could  throw  out  the 
clutch,  the  car  stopped  dead.  Fleming  di 
rected  Sid  to  take  the  cells  out  of  the  battery 
box.  Then,  with  a  quarter-inch  drill,  he  made 
a  hole  in  the  top  of  each  cell  and  poured  into 
this  hole  about  two  tablespoonsful  of  water. 

Sid  sniffed  incredulously ;  but  a  test  showed 
that,  with  this  homoeopathic  treatment,  the 

240 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

worn-out  cells  had  returned  to  life.  The  dial 
of  the  ammeter  showed  eleven  amperes.  Sid 
returned  the  batteries  and  connected  them, 
and  a  half  turn  of  the  starting  crank  set  the 
engine  to  running  as  merrily  as  ever. 

Fleming  drew  a  long  breath  of  relief.  "I 
didn't  know  whether  that  stunt  would  work," 
he  remarked;  "but  I'm  mighty  glad  it  did. 
That's  about  as  close  to  being  stranded  as  I 
ever  want  to  come  in  this  dried-up  corner  of 
the  world." 

In  Boise  they  reveled  in  the  luxury  of  bath 
and  supper  at  the  best  hotel  they  had  met  with 
since  leaving  Chicago.  Fleming  felt  that 
nothing  could  add  to  the  general  Tightness  of 
things,  when  he  found  he  could  telephone  di 
rectly  to  Betty's  hotel  in  Portland.  It  was 
impossible  to  keep  an  exultant  note  out  of  his 
voice  as  he  told  her  they  were  three-quarters 
across  Idaho,  in  fighting  trim,  and  a  lap  or 
two  ahead  of  the  Italian  car. 

"We  ought  to  make  Ontario,  Oregon,  to 
morrow  night,"  he  said;  "then  in  about  five 
days  to  Wapinitia  and  then  Mount  Hood.  If 
I  do  it  I'll  be  the  first  to  cross  the  Cascades  in 
a  motor  car — 

"Unless  the  Signor  crosses  ahead  of  you! " 
Betty  interrupted. 

241] 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

"  Well,  I  don't  think  he  will.  His  car  isn't 
built  for  wading  swamps  and  climbing  rocks 
— as  I've  said  before.  But  we'll  see.  What's 
that?  Oh,  yes,  I'll  take  care  of  myself.  It's 
awfully  good  to  hear  your  voice,  Betty." 

And  the  conversation  at  this  point  left 
motor  cars  and  became  too  personal  to  be  lis 
tened  to  honorably. 

The  next  morning  Sid  and  Fleming  were  up 
before  daylight  and  at  work  on  the  car.  The 
pistons  were  taken  out  and  examined;  the 
badly  worn  rear  tires  were  changed  for  a  pair 
with  new  Bailey-treads;  a  set  of  new  dry  cells 
was  installed,  and,  to  get  the  maximum  of 
power  for  the  mountains  before  them,  Spitfire 
plugs  were  substituted  for  their  badly  corroded 
old  ones.  For  the  next  350  miles  they  would 
have  to  depend  on  their  own  resources.  Boise 
was  their  last  town  of  any  size  until  they 
reached  Portland.  They  could  count  on  no 
convenient  garage  for  repairs.  Even  black 
smiths'  shops  are  few  and  far  between  in  Ore 
gon,  and  they  must  carry  with  them  every  part 
of  the  car  that  might  need  replacement  on  the 
long  journey  across  the  State.  When  they  left 
Boise,  in  the  middle  of  the  forenoon,  escorted 
by  Jim  Taylor,  the  garage  owner,  in  his  little 
old-fashioned  Franklin,  the  Mountaineer  was 

242 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

like  a  veteran  ready  for  a  week  of  forced 
marches. 

That  day  they  found  a  bridge  down  over 
the  Little  Boise  River,  and  were  obliged  to 
cross  it  in  extremely  precarious  fashion  on 
two  punts  lashed  together  and  poled  by  Mexi 
can  herders.  A  second  ferry  across  the  Snake 
River  landed  them  on  the  Oregon  shore  after 
a  sixty-mile  drive  through  choking  alkali  dust, 
relieved  only  by  patches  of  barren  prairie  and 
sage. 

The  next  day  they  left  the  railroad  behind 
them.  They  would  not  see  it  again  for  350 
miles.  In  two  days'  hard  traveling  they 
reached  Prineville,  a  prosperous  little  town, 
very  nearly  the  geographical  center  of  the 
great  State.  For  200  miles  around  Prineville 
every  necessity  of  life  not  manufactured  or 
grown  in  the  vicinity  is  brought  in  by 
"  freighters."  On  the  trail  from  Ontario  to 
Burns  Fleming's  car  frequently  passed  these 
twenty-horse  outfits,  driven  with  a  single  line, 
plodding  west  through  a  cloud  of  dust,  carry 
ing  to  the  interior  anything  from  a  paper  of 
pins  to  a  piano.  They  found  that  any  part  of 
the  trail  traveled  by  these  freighters  presented 
few  difficulties  to  their  car ;  but,  for  a  hundred 
miles  between  Burns  and  Prineville,  there  is 

243 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

practically  no  freighting,  and  Fleming  ran 
into  sand  oftentimes  half  way  up  to  the  hubs. 
They  reached  Prineville  at  midnight,  after 
having  literally  fought  their  way  for  sixteen 
hours  through  irrigation  ditches,  rocks  and 
sand. 

In  the  little  hotel  at  Prineville,  Fleming  and 
Sid  were  told  they  could  never  get  the  car  over 
the  Cascades,  even  if  they  succeeded  in  climb 
ing  the  Muleton  range.  It  was  a  rare  thing  for 
even  an  emigrant  wagon  to  cross  Mount 
Hood,  the  usual  route  being  to  the  Dalles  and 
then  down  the  Columbia  by  steamboat  to 
Portland.  Fleming  admitted  that  it  might 
seem  absurd  for  a  car  with  an  eight-inch  clear 
ance  to  attempt  what  was  difficult  for  wagons ; 
but  he  meant,  nevertheless,  to  have  a  try  at  the 
Barlow  Pass.  It  was  impossible  for  him  to 
find  out  how  far  behind  him  his  rival  was  and, 
with  this  uncertainty  as  to  Vannuccini's  prog 
ress,  he  felt  impelled  to  press  on  with  the  least 
possible  loss  of  time. 

For  the  last  200  miles  they  had  noticed  a 
change  in  the  weather.  The  early  mornings 
and  nights  were  beginning  to  be  very  cold.  A 
ranchman  at  whose  place  they  had  dinner, 
after  leaving  Prineville,  told  them  the  sheep 
men  were  coming  down  from  the  hills  and 

244 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

there  was  every  sign  of  an  early  snowstorm. 
He  shook  his  head  at  the  mention  of  Barlow 
Pass. 

"You'll  never  make  it  with  that  there  out 
fit,"  he  said,  "  unless  it  c'n  climb  trees.  And 
you'll  find  it'll  be  standing  on  its  hind  legs 
most  of  the  time  when  you  get  into  the  Warm 
Spring  Hills." 

Fleming  was  inclined  to  laugh  at  this 
gloomy  prophecy;  but,  late  that  afternoon,  he 
admitted  there  was  something  in  the  ranch 
man's  remark  about  the  Warm  Spring  Hills. 
The  country  had  been  growing  more  and  more 
mountainous  from  the  time  they  first  sighted 
the  snowy  peaks  of  the  Three  Sisters,  an 
hour  after  leaving  Prineville.  At  three  in 
the  afternoon  the  trail  had  become  a  succes 
sion  of  sharp  up-grades  and  sudden  descents. 
At  four  they  found  themselves  at  the  bottom 
of  a  mountain  to  which  Sid  respectfully  took 
off  his  hat. 

'  You're  the  prize  winner,"  he  said.  "  Do 
you  think  for  a  moment  this  car  will  take  that 
grade?"  he  asked  Fleming. 

"Maybe  not,"  laughed  Fleming;  "but  it's 
going  to  make  a  bluff  at  it  before  it  gives 
up." 

A  quarter  of  the  way  up  the  gradometer 

245 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

registered  a  twenty-two  per  cent,  grade;  half 
way  up  it  had  climbed  to  forty  and  the  engine 
was  slowly  but  surely  giving  up  the  struggle. 
It  seemed  inevitable  that  they  would  slip  back 
down  the  mountain.  As  the  car  stopped  Flem 
ing  speeded  up  the  engine;  then,  as  he  threw 
in  his  clutch  and  the  Nero  jumped  forward  a 
few  paces,  Sid  ran  after  it  with  a  stone  to  keep 
it  from  the  backward  rush.  They  had  made 
two-thirds  of  the  distance  in  this  fashion  when 
one  of  the  brake  bands  snapped.  Only  the 
sprags  on  the  rear  axles  prevented  the  car 
from  backing  down  the  trail  and  being  dashed 
to  splinters  on  the  rocks  below.  The  grade 
steepened  and  further  progress  was  plainly 
impossible.  With  the  sprags  holding  the 
Mountaineer  in  place,  Fleming  and  Sid  at 
tached  their  cable  to  an  enormous  flat  rock  at 
the  side  of  the  trail  and,  thus  ballasted  and 
dragging  the  rock,  they  backed  the  car  down 
the  hill  they  had  just  climbed  so  laboriously. 

Once  safely  on  the  level  again,  they  cast 
themselves  down  exhausted,  and  for  the  mo 
ment  at  the  end  of  their  resources.  A  tumultu 
ous  little  stream  ran  at  the  foot  of  the  moun 
tain.  The  bed  of  this  stream  was  evidently 
the  only  alternative  route.  Night  was  coming 
on  and  not  even  Fleming  cared  to  drive  the 

246 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

car,  possibly  for  miles,  up  the  bed  of  an  un 
known  stream  in  the  semi-darkness.  He  re 
sumed  the  steering  wheel  and  turned  back.  In 
half  an  hour  they  had  sighted  a  small  ranch, 
whose  owner,  a  gaunt,  sullen-eyed  Indian,  al 
lowed  them — for  a  dollar — to  sleep  on  the  hay 
in  his  barn,  a  privilege  they  shared  that  night 
with  a  skunk — a  peaceably  inclined  little  ani 
mal  who  did  not  make  his  presence  known 
until  he  walked  out  of  the  hay  next  morn 
ing. 

That  forenoon  they  drove  the  car  a  mile  up 
the  bed  of  the  stream,  until  they  were  able  to 
strike  the  trail  beyond  the  mountain  where  they 
had  met  their  defeat  the  afternoon  before.  At 
one  o'clock  they  boiled  their  coffee  at  a  point 
in  the  trail  from  which  they  could  see  a  won 
derful  panorama  of  hills  and  mountain  peaks. 
They  had  reached  the  highest  point  of  the 
Muleton  Mountains;  all  about  them,  like  the 
waves  of  a  great  sea,  were  the  hills  of  this 
range,  and,  ninety  miles  to  the  northwest,  the 
white  cap  of  Mount  Hood  rose  with  a  mirac 
ulous  effect  of  light  above  the  drifting 
clouds.  Even  the  city-bound  soul  of  Sid 
Johnston  was  impressed  by  the  beauty  of  the 
moment,  arid  Fleming,  as  he  looked  across  at 
the  snowy  peaks  of  the  Cascades,  felt  a  strong 

247 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

exhilaration  rising  in  him.  He  knew  that  be 
tween  those  gleaming  peaks  he  was  to  face  the 
crucial  moment  of  the  long,  hard  road  he  had 
traveled.  The  test  of  his  courage  and  the  test 
of  his  faith  in  himself  lay  there,  in  that  last 
gaunt  barrier. 

Three  hours  later  they  ran  into  Wapinitia 
with  their  brake  bands  smoking  from  continu 
ous  coasting  down  mile  after  mile  of  mountain 
trails.  There  are  three  saloons,  a  boarding- 
house,  and  two  frame  dwellings  in  Wapinitia, 
and  the  first  person  they  met  in  this  outpost  of 
civilization  was  Hiram  D.  Albright. 

He  stood  in  front  of  the  boarding-house, 
and  his  face,  as  he  greeted  them,  wore  the 
sheepish  smile  of  the  boy  who  has  run  away  to 
pay  a  visit  and  is  rather  dubious  about  his  wel 
come. 

"  Came  in  by  stage,"  he  explained.  "  Betty 
wanted  I  should  come — she  got  to  worrying. 
People  in  the  hotel  at  Portland  told  her  no  au 
tomobile  could  get  thrugh  the  Barlow  Pass  on 
account  of  the  big  storm  a  few  days  ago.  I 
thought  I'd  just  hang  around  for  Vannuccini 
and  maybe  I'd  go  through  with  him.  Might 
just  as  well  go  back  to  the  railroad  in  the 
stage,"  he  added  with  an  attempt  at  perfect 
indifference. 

248 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

Sid  and  Fleming  looked  at  each  other  ap 
prehensively.  It  was  perfectly  plain  to  them 
that  Betty's  father  had  got  bitten  by  the  motor 
microbe,  and  it  was  equally  plain  that  it  made 
little  difference  to  him  which  car  he  rode  in. 
He  had  heard  the  call  of  the  road  and  had 
found  it  irresistible. 

"  But  how  do  you  know  Vannuccini  is  tak 
ing  this  route?"  Fleming  hinted.  "He  may 
be  going  over  Santiam  Pass  and,  in  that  case, 
he  would  only  follow  our  trail  as  far  as  Prine- 
ville,  and  then  he'd  branch  off  to  the  South." 

Hiram  D.  was  not  bothered  by  this  possi 
bility.  "Oh,  well,"  he  said  easily;  "if  he 
doesn't  turn  up  by  to-morrow  morning,  I'll 
just  go  along  with  you.  I  can't  waste  any 
more  time  fooling  around  here  anyway." 

And  Fleming  said  nothing.  It  had  occurred 
to  him  that  possibly  it  might  do  Betty's  father 
good  to  face  some  real  difficulties;  it  would 
be  the  best  chance  in  the  world  to  prove  to  him 
that  the  Mountaineer  could  do  what  had  been 
claimed  for  it.  The  idea  had  evidently  oc 
curred  to  Hiram  and  stirred  the  spirit  of  op 
position  in  his  mind,  for  he  said,  with  a  hint  of 
defiance : 

"  They  tell  me  an  emigrant  wagon  came  over 
the  pass  the  other  day  and  had  to  chop  its  way 

249 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

through.  Don't  believe  your  car  can  make  it 
anyway.  Do  you  think  you'd  better  try  it?" 

Fleming  stiffened.  "Do  you  want  to  see 
me  try  it,  Mr.  Albright?"  he  returned. 
"  We'll  leave  here  at  daybreak  to-morrow,  and 
there's  a  seat  for  you  if  you  want  it." 

The  older  man's  face  brightened  percep 
tibly.  :<  Well,  I'd  just  as  soon,"  he  said,  try 
ing  not  to  look  interested.  "  But  I  don't  be 
lieve  you  can  make  it,"  he  added,  to  keep  him 
self  in  countenance. 

"  To-morrow  night  at  this  time  we'll  know 
more  about  it,"  Jerry  laughed.  "  In  the  mean 
time  let's  have  supper." 


250 


CHAPTER   XX 

"^iriHIS  time  to-morrow  night"  had 
come.  Undoubtedly  they  all  knew 
M  very  much  more  about  it  than  when 
they  had  discussed  the  route  in  Wapinitia  the 
night  before.  For,  instead  of  covering  one 
hundred  miles  in  a  day  and  a  half,  as  Fleming 
had  planned,  and  gaining  the  shelter  of  the 
Government  camp  on  Mount  Hood  for  the 
second  night,  they  had  made  forty  miles  and 
now  faced  a  night  in  the  open. 

To  add  an  element  of  apprehension  to  the 
situation  there  was  plainly  some  sort  of  storm 
brewing  in  the  upper  air.  High  up  among  the 
great  pines  and  firs  there  was  a  sound  as  of  an 
angry  sea ;  their  tops  swayed  and  tossed  before 
the  wind  until  the  whole  mountainside  seemed 
tremulous  with  life.  The  air  had  grown  sud 
denly  cold  with  a  chill  not  of  the  hour  after 
sunset.  Fleming  remembered  what  the  stage 
driver  had  said  to  him  that  morning  as  they 
were  leaving.  He  had  leaned  against  a  post 
with  a  cynical  smile  on  his  weather-beaten  face 
and  scoffed  openly  at  the  Easterners  as  they; 
stowed  away  provisions  in  the  tonneau. 

251 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

"You-all  will  be  dropping  back  into  town 
to-morrow  mornin',"  he  grinned.  ;<  Why,  it'd 
be  a  right  smart  trick  f  er  me  to  drive  an  outfit 
over  the  Pass  at  this  time  'o  the  year — an'  I 
c'n  drive  some,  too.  The's  trees  enough  across 
the  trail  to  build  a  house,  an'  that  storm  we 
had  a  few  days  ago  has  brought  up  water  in 
the  woods  till  what  you'll  need  is  a  bridge 
gang  to  go  ahead  of  you." 

Then  he  stopped  and  held  up  a  moistened 
forefinger  to  the  wind.  "  The's  another  storm 
comin',  too.  Wind  and  mebee  snow.  You 
take  my  advice  an'  go  down  to  Portland  on 
the  river  boats." 

But  this  was,  of  course,  out  of  the  question 
for  Fleming.  He  had,  indeed,  tried  at  the  last 
minute  to  persuade  Betty's  father  to  go  back 
to  Portland  by  way  of  the  river;  but  Hiram 
D.  was  highly  indignant  at  the  insinuation  that 
he  could  not  stand  the  possible  hardships  be 
fore  them.  He  would  go  on  with  the  car,  then, 
anyway;  and  the  outcome  of  it  was  that  Flem 
ing  had  the  additional  worry  of  feeling  that  he 
was  leading  Betty's  father  into  unknown 
dangers. 

This  feeling  was  most  strongly  with  him  as 
he  listened  to  the  rising  of  the  wind  and  real 
ized  that  in  half  an  hour  a  dark  and  cold  night 

252 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

would  be  upon  them.  All  that  day  they  had 
forded  creeks,  climbed  up  and  down  hill,  used 
their  windlass  and  cable  to  haul  themselves 
out  of  gulches  washed  out  across  the  road,  and 
jacked  up  the  car  twice  to  get  it  over  a  boulder 
in  the  trail.  They  had  exerted  every  bit  of 
strength  and  ingenuity  they  possessed  to  make 
the  top  of  the  Pass,  but  in  vain.  There  was 
nothing  for  them  now  but  to  prepare  to  camp 
where  they  were. 

For  himself  Jerry  would  not  have  minded  it 
if  it  had  been  possible  to  predict  what  sort  of 
eifect  roughing  it  would  have  on  the  health 
and  temper  of  Betty's  father.  He  had  had  a 
sample  of  Hiram  D.  Albright  in  an  irascible 
mood,  and  he  did  not  care  to  repeat  the  experi 
ment. 

But,  curiously  enough,  Hiram  accepted  the 
situation  philosophically.  Indeed,  an  almost 
boyish  spirit  of  adventure  seemed  to  have  came 
to  life  in  the  gray-haired  business  man.  He 
expressed  no  forebodings  as  to  rheumatism, 
and  he  fell  to  work  unloading  blankets  and 
cooking  utensils  as  if  he  had  not  had  twenty 
years  of  manual  idleness.  On  account  of  the 
high  wind  they  dug  a  shallow  trench  for  their 
fire  and  put  the  tire  irons  across  it  to  support 
the  coffee  pot. 

253 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

"  We'll  cook  the  coffee  first  and  then  the 
bacon,"  Sid  directed. 

He  was  at  that  moment  head  and  shoulders 
in  the  tonneau,  but  suddenly  he  emerged  with 
a  groan  of  horror. 

"We've  lost  the  bacon!"  he  cried— "the 
whole  bloomin'  chunk!" 

It  was  a  moment  before  the  tragedy  of  this 
fact  burst  upon  them,  but  when  they  realized 
it  fully,  the  three  of  them  cast  themselves  into 
the  tonneau  in  a  despairing  search.  No  use! 
The  bacon  had  been  shaken  out  somewhere  on 
the  rough  trail,  and  with  it  everything  in  the 
food  line  with  the  exception  of  a  box  of  crack 
ers  and  small  can  of  ground  coffee.  It  was  a 
depressing  discovery. 

They  supped  lightly  on  crackers  and  coffee 
—and  the  next  morning  they  breakfasted 
frugally  on  coffee  and  crackers.  But  in  the 
meantime  they  had  passed  through  such  an 
experience  as  none  of  them  would  ever  for 
get. 

About  midnight  there  burst  upon  them  one 
of  those  inexplicable  and  violent  storms  which 
frequently  vent  their  fury  upon  the  Cascades. 
They  were  wakened  first  by  a  crash  of  thunder, 
and  almost  immediately  the  rain  was  upon 
them — a  deluge  of  rain  which  poured  down 

254 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

even  through  the  thick  forest  as  if  from  a  hun 
dred  water  spouts.  The  wind  rose  and  lashed 
the  trees  until,  in  fear  of  falling  branches,  the 
three  men  crawled  under  the  partial  shelter  of 
the  car,  where  they  lay,  wet  and  uncomfort 
able,  listening  to  the  pounding  of  the  enor 
mous  hailstones  which  were  coming  down  with 
the  rain.  As  the  storm  increased  in  violence 
they  could  hear,  far  up  the  mountainside,  the 
crash  of  falling  trees.  The  noise  was  like  far- 
off  artillery,  terrifying  and  sleep-dispelling. 

In  this  manner  they  spent  the  rest  of  the 
night,  most  miserably.  Sid  amused  himself  by 
enumerating  the  things  he  would  like  to  have 
for  breakfast,  until  Fleming,  goaded  by  his 
empty  stomach,  threatened  to  pitch  him  out 
into  the  storm  if  he  did  not  stop.  The  thought 
that  absorbed  Fleming's  mind  was  the  ques 
tion  of  Vannuccini's  whereabouts.  If  he  had 
gone  by  Santiam  pass  had  he  escaped  this 
storm?  While  they  had  been  crawling  along, 
sometimes  taking  hours  to  make  a  single  mile, 
what  had  the  Italian  car  been  doing?  How 
far  from  Portland  was  it — and  what  would 
Betty  say  if  the  Superba  reached  its  goal  first? 

With  the  first  indication  of  daylight  they 
crawled  out  and  looked  about  them.  The  rain 
had  long  since  ceased,  but  the  havoc  of  the 

255 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

storm  was  everywhere.  Not  twenty  rods  from 
their  camp  a  giant  fir  lay  straight  across  the 
trail;  in  all  directions  brooks  and  rivulets  that 
had  not  been  there  the  night  before  were  rush 
ing  down  the  mountainside.  The  woods 
seemed  drowned  and  soaking,  pools  of  water 
lay  where  before  there  had  flourished  a  bed  of 
ferns ;  there  did  not  seem  to  be  a  dry  twig  left 
in  the  forest. 

They  made  their  coffee  over  the  flames  of 
the  blow-torch  and  got  what  sustenance  they 
could  out  of  a  box  of  damp  crackers,  and  then 
they  prepared  for  what  was  to  be  the  hardest 
day's  work  any  of  them  had  ever  known. 

It  did  not  once  occur  to  Fleming  to  turn 
back,  though  Betty's  father  declared  he  was 
willing  to  bear  witness  to  the  fact  that  the  trail 
was  impossible. 

"  Nothing  is  impossible,"  Jerry  returned, 
setting  his  lips  in  the  straight  line  the  older 
man  was  beginning  to  recognize.  "  We  have 
plenty  of  gasolene;  the  car  is  running  well, 
and  I'm  going  on.  That's  all  there  is  to  say." 

That  day  they  made  nine  miles. 

In  the  morning  it  had  been  a  simple  matter 
of  sticking  to  the  trail  until  they  reached  a 
camp;  at  night  it  had  become  a  struggle  for 
their  very  lives.  For  at  noon  they  had  made 

256 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

their  last  meal  of  crackers,  and  they  had  not 
seen  a  living  thing  in  the  forest.  The  trail 
grew  with  every  mile  more  difficult.  It  had 
been  at  best  two  faint  wheel  ruts  following  a 
devious  way  among  stumps  and  fallen  trees. 
After  the  storm  it  had  become  nearly  obliter 
ated;  they  might  almost  as  easily  have  driven 
a  motor  car  through  the  unopened  forest. 
Beginning  that  morning  with  the  fir  tree  which 
they  had  chopped  in  two  sections  to  get  the  car 
through,  they  had  hewn  their  path  through  the 
trunks  of  six  trees,  which  had  fallen  across  the 
trail,  and  had  built  two  sections  of  corduroy 
road  over  a  slimy  swamp. 

When  in  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  they 
stopped  with  the  radiator  of  the  Mountaineer 
against  a  pine  that  stretched  its  four-foot  di 
ameter  across  their  path,  Betty's  father  was  a 
pathetic  sight.  He  had  lost  his  hat  somewhere 
on  the  way,  and  Sid  had  lent  him  a  cap  which 
looked  singularly  incongruous  on  his  gray 
head.  He  was  splashed  with  mud  from  head  to 
foot;  his  hands  were  bruised  and  blistered, 
and  one  of  his  bushy  eyebrows  was  inky  black 
from  a  splash  of  grease.  But  curiously  enough 
the  spirit  of  what  Sid  called  "  a  dead  game 
sport  "  had  been  aroused  in  the  millionaire  man 
ufacturer.  He  had  not  uttered  one  complaint ; 

257 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

he  had  done  his  share  of  the  work  with  a  sort  of 
grim  enthusiasm,  and  when  they  seemed  at  last 
to  have  come  to  a  final  impasse,  he  said : 

"  Well,  Jerry,  I  guess  we  can  get  over  that, 
can't  we?" 

There  was  a  note  of  equality  and  comrade 
ship  in  the  old  man's  tone  that  Jerry  had  never 
heard  there  before.  It  gave  him  exactly  the 
courage  he  needed  just  then.  He  got  up  from 
the  log  where  he  had  thrown  himself  exhausted 
and  replied  cheerfully: 

"Why,  of  course  we  can.  But  it  will  take 
six  hours  to  chop  through  that  giant  with  one 
ax;  we'll  just  build  a  runway  and  drive  the  car 
over  it." 

It  is  one  thing  to  build  roads  over  a  four- 
foot  obstacle  when  one  has  had  a  good  break 
fast  and  dinner;  but,  as  Sid  said,  to  do  these 
things  when  a  man  is  "so  everlasting  hungry 
he  gets  to  seeing  steaks  and  hearing  dinner 
bells,"  is  another  proposition.  By  the  middle 
of  the  afternoon  they  were  desperately  hun 
gry.  As  they  forded  a  branch  of  the  Salmon 
River  Sid  declared  he  saw  a  trout.  With 
one  accord  they  climbed  out  of  the  car  on  the 
bank  of  the  stream  and  watched  Sid  with  bated 
breath  as  he  patiently  angled  for  that  fish. 
But  it  was  no  use,  the  Oregon  fish  were  too 

258 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

wily  to  furnish  luncheon  for  three  starving 
Easterners.  They  did  not  respond  with  as 
much  as  a  nibble.  Sorely  disappointed,  the 
three  climbed  back  into  their  places.  Unless 
a  turn  of  the  trail  revealed  a  house  or  camp 
within  an  hour  they  would  have  to  go  supper- 
less  to  bed  on  the  ground  once  more. 

At  six  o'clock  it  is  dark  in  those  cathedral- 
like  forest  aisles.  They  struggled  on,  each  one 
of  them  determinedly  cheerful,  until  they  were 
obliged  to  pause  at  the  edge  of  a  green  and 
slimy  swamp.  Sid  in  his  hip  boots  waded  in 
and  found  the  water  not  more  than  eight  inches 
deep.  But  half  way  across  the  car  stuck  in  the 
mud.  The  cable  was  unwound  and  run  out  to 
a  near-by  tree.  It  broke  after  half  a  dozen 
turns  of  the  handle,  was  spliced  and  broke 
again,  repeatedly.  The  night  had  settled  down 
upon  them  by  the  time  they  got  the  car  on  to 
firm  ground.  Too  exhausted  to  make  a  fire 
and  boil  their  coffee,  they  rolled  up  in  blankets, 
Betty's  father  in  the  car,  Fleming  and  Sid  on 
the  ground,  and  fell  asleep. 

It  seemed  to  Fleming  that  he  had  no  more 
than  closed  his  eyes  when  he  found  himself  sit 
ting  bolt  upright,  with  a  snarling  scream  ring 
ing  in  his  ears.  Sid  also  jumped  to  his  feet, 
visibly  scared.  He  had  never  heard  such  a 

259 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

blood-curdling  sound  in  his  life,  and  he  was 
extremely  averse  to  remaining  under  that  par 
ticular  tree  any  longer.  The  call  or  challenge, 
or  whatever  it  was,  had  been  answered  far  off 
in  the  forest  by  the  weird  wail  of  a  panther; 
and  then,  as  they  became  accustomed  to  the 
darkness  about  them,  they  were  aware  that  in 
the  branches  of  a  tree  on  the  other  side  of  the 
trail  a  pair  of  brilliant,  fiery  eyes  were  looking 
down  at  them. 

After  that  no  persuasion  could  induce  Sid 
to  sleep  in  the  open.  In  fact,  Fleming  him 
self  did  not  relish  the  thought  that  the  owner 
of  that  snarling  scream  might  come  dropping 
down  upon  him  as  he  slept.  They  lighted  a 
fire  with  what  half-dry  material  they  could 
find.  Then  they  rolled  two  logs  parallel  to 
each  other,  spread  their  blankets  between, 
threw  some  smaller  logs  and  saplings  over  the 
top,  and  crawled  beneath  this  shelter. 

When  morning  dawned  the  three  men  looked 
at  each  other,  and  each  of  them  knew  that 
another  day  of  violent  exertion  without  food 
would  leave  them  at  the  end  of  their  strength 
that  night.  Fleming  drew  his  belt  up  tighter 
and  a  look  of  grim  stubbornness  came  into  his 
face. 

"  We  can't  be  far  below  the  timber  line,"  he 
260 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

said :  "  I  don't  believe  the  Government  camp  is 
more  than  twenty  miles  away.  Things  can't 
get  any  worse,  that's  certain,  and — well,  I'm 
going  to  stick  to  the  car,  anyway." 

Another  day  of  hunger  and  endless  struggle 
seemed  before  them ;  but  early  in  the  forenoon 
they  came  with  startling  unexpectedness  upon 
a  small  clearing,  and  in  the  midst  of  it  was  a 
house.  With  a  shout  of  joy  Fleming  and  Sid 
ran  toward  it — and  then  stopped,  for  the  place 
was  absolutely  deserted.  The  gray  and 
weather-stained  door  sagged  open  on  its 
hinges;  rank  weeds  grew  high  about  the  rot 
ting  doorstep.  It  was  a  thoroughly  depress 
ing  sight;  but  hope  died  hard  in  their  hearts. 
Even  Mr.  Albright  joined  them  in  a  search 
from  attic  to  cellar  of  the  dismal  place. 

But  they  could  find  nothing  eatable.  Their 
examination  of  the  house  proved  to  them  that 
it  must  have  been  abandoned  several  years  be 
fore.  Mournfully  they  filed  out  into  the  grass- 
grown  dooryard  and  silently  they  were  prepar 
ing  to  get  under  way  again,  when  there  came 
to  their  ears  a  curious  sound.  It  was  faint, 
far  off,  but  perfectly  definite,  and  each  of 
them  knew  at  once  it  was  the  noise  a  power 
ful  automobile  makes  when  its  muffler  is  off. 

The  three  men  looked  at  each  other  without 

261 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

a  word.  In  Fleming's  eyes  for  the  first  time 
since  he  had  undertaken  the  conquest  of  the 
Pass,  there  was  the  shadow  of  discouragement. 
He  knew  as  well  as  the  others  that  it  was  Van- 
nuccini  behind  them,  and  he  realized  with  bitter 
chagrin  that  in  the  last  two  days  he  had  been 
literally  building  a  trail  for  his  rival.  The 
same  thought  seemed  to  have  occurred  to  the 
others,  for  Sid  said  with  a  rueful  grin: 

"  He  don't  have  to  stop  to  chop  down  no 
trees  or  build  corduroy  roads.  Just  listen  to 
that  exhaust!  They're  coming  along  at  a  fair 
jog,  they  are!" 

"Well,  I  hope  nis  provisions  haven't  given 
out,"  said  Fleming,  quietly:  but  in  his  inmost 
heart  he  was  telling  himself  that  he  would  hold 
the  trail  if  he  had  to  stand  guard  over  it  with 
his  six-shooter. 

But  there  was  no  need  for  desperate  meas 
ures — the  Italian  had  not  the  slightest  desire 
or  intention  to  take  the  lead.  He  overtook 
them  as  they  were  clearing  a  stump  from  the 
trail,  and  he  amiably  placed  his  grub  box  at 
their  disposal  when  he  learned  their  plight;  but 
he  made  it  perfectly  clear  that  he  preferred  the 
rear  of  that  procession. 

'  Till  we  get  to  good  roads,"  said  Sid  aside 
to  Fleming. 

262 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

"  If  he  takes  the  rear  now  he's  got  to  keep 
it,"  Fleming  returned  grimly. 

Vannuccini  told  them  he  had  left  Wapinitia 
the  day  before.  He  had  profited  by  their 
labors  to  the  extent  of  making  fifty  miles  to 
their  ten.  It  was  a  galling  fact  for  the  road 
builders  to  swallow,  but  they  consoled  them 
selves  with  the  immediate  blessings  of  some 
thing  to  eat.  It  was  a  meal  sadly  dispropor- 
tioned  to  their  appetites,  for  Vannuccini's  grub 
box  was  but  scantily  furnished. 

"  I  could  eat  that  much  all  over  again,"  Sid 
remarked,  as  Fleming  made  him  put  back  part 
of  the  provisions  for  another  meal. 

"We  don't  know  how  long  we'll  have  to 
make  it  last,"  Fleming  said. 

But  even  this  scanty  lunch  put  new  life  into 
them  all.  Jerry  had  been  doing  some  thinking 
as  he  ate,  and  as  the  rest  of  them  climbed  back 
to  their  places  in  the  two  cars,  he  turned 
politely  to  Vannuccini. 

"Perhaps  you  would  like  to  go  ahead?  "  he 
said. 

"My  dear  Fleming,  not  at  all!  After 
you!"  the  Italian  replied  with  a  smile  which 
conveyed  a  variety  of  meanings. 

And  "after  you"  was  the  keynote  of  his 
attitude  the  rest  of  the  day. 

263 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

It  seemed  incredible,  but  before  afternoon 
one  fact  had  dawned  upon  them  all — Vannuc- 
cini  did  not  intend  to  work. 

Fleming  had  naturally  assumed  that  in  the 
matter  of  tree-chopping  the  crews  of  the  two 
cars  would  alternate.  But  he  was  speedily 
assured  of  the  futility  of  expecting  help  from 
his  rival.  Vannuccini  was  quite  willing  his 
mechanic  should  chop  trees;  but  when  Jarvis 
paused  to  rest  and  it  was  hinted  that  his  em 
ployer  might  take  his  place,  the  Italian  stared 
as  if  astonished  at  the  mere  idea.  He  said, 
quite  amiably,  that  he  had  never  wielded  an 
ax  and  he  did  not  intend  to  learn.  Then  he 
climbed  into  his  car,  where  he  sat  rolling  ciga 
rettes  and  gazing  urbanely  upon  the  toiling, 
sweating  quartette  as  they  removed  a  six- 
foot  section  from  the  trunk  of  a  giant  fir 
stretched  across  the  trail. 

'  Well,  say — ain't  he  got  an  armor-plated 
nerve?"  Sid  asked  his  fellow  workers,  but  he 
received  no  response. 

Jarvis  looked  as  if  he  could  a  tale  unfold, 
but  was  restrained  by  the  etiquette  of  the 
driver  and  mechanic;  Fleming  shut  his  mouth 
tightly  and  chopped  away;  and  into  the  face 
of  Betty's  father  there  came  a  look  of  anger 
repressed  to  the  apoplectic  point. 

264 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

But  Hiram  said  nothing  until  they  had 
worked  along  to  where  a  slimy  pool  stretched 
across  the  trail  and  as  far  as  they  could  see 
into  the  woods  on  either  side. 

Fleming  had  already  had  too  much  experi 
ence  with  the  sticky  mud  at  the  bottom  of  such 
pools  to  try  to  drive  the  car  through  it.  There 
was  only  one  thing  to  do, — they  must  build  a 
corduroy  road  of  saplings  and  such  small 
logs  as  they  could  roll  into  the  mud  hole.  That 
meant  two  hours  of  back-breaking  work. 

Hiram  looked  at  Vannuccini,  who  had 
stopped  his  car  at  a  discreet  distance. 

"  Say! "  he  called,  trying  to  make  his  voice 
as  matter-of-fact  as  possible,  "  we've  got  to 
corduroy  this  bit.  Get  out,  will  you,  and  help 
Jarvis  with  those  saplings." 

Possibly  the  menacing  eye  of  Hiram  D.  Al 
bright  conveyed  more  meaning  than  his  words. 
At  any  rate,  Vannuccini  descended  from  his 
seat.  He  laid  hold  of  one  end  of  a  stout  sap 
ling  Jarvis  had  chopped  down,  dragged  it 
to  the  pool,  looked  apprehensively  at  his  hands, 
and  then  walked  back  to  the  car,  settled  him 
self  comfortably  and  went  to  sleep. 

Hiram  stared  for  an  enraged  minute  at 
the  placid  figure,  and  then  drew  Jarvis  one 
side. 

265 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

"  Say,  has  he  done  any  work  on  this  trip? " 
he  asked. 

Jarvis  looked  at  his  master  with  unconcealed 
dislike.  "It's  like  this,  Mr.  Albright.  He 
can  work  like  a  devil  if  he  has  to,  but  he'll 
never  do  one  stroke  if  he  can  make  somebody 
else  do  it  for  him — see?  He's  the  smartest 
proposition  and  the  most  ornery  one  I  ever 
run  up  against.  That's  giving  it  to  you 
straight,  sir." 

Hiram  looked  long  and  thoughtfully  at  the 
slumbering  Italian,  then  he  said : 

"  Jerry,  I  want  you  to  beat  that  cusjs." 

It  would  have  given  Jerry  keen  satisfaction 
to  know  that  at  last  Betty's  father  wanted  him 
to  win  but  for  the  apparent  hopelessness  of 
the  situation.  He  knew  as  well  as  if  he  had 
already  seen  the  close  of  their  long  struggle 
across  the  continent  that  Vannuccini  would 
beat  him  on  the  good  roads  between  Salmon 
and  Portland.  The  moment  they  got  over  the 
Pass — if  they  ever  did — the  Italian  would  take 
the  road  ahead,  and  he,  Jerry,  would  enter 
Portland  as  far  behind  as  there  was  difference 
in  their  horse-power. 

Fleming  knew  he  wras  using  all  his  strength 
merely  to  see  the  other  car  take  the  lead  when 
he  had  hewn  and  built  a  road  for  it  out  of  the 

266 


THE     CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

forest.  And  under  the  circumstances  he  was 
powerless  to  change  the  situation.  Luck  had 
caught  him  in  a  trap  from  which  there  was  no 
way  out. 

As  he  realized  the  situation  fully,  many  des 
perate  thoughts  came  into  his  mind.  Whether 
he  lost  or  won  the  race  he  had  no  doubt  of 
Betty's  attitude,  and  he  was  certain  Vannuc- 
cini  must  know  by  this  time  that  his  hopes  in 
that  direction  were  in  vain ;  but  Fleming  knew 
now  that  he  had  to  do  with  an  unscrupulous 
and  skillful  adversary.  He  was  face  to  face 
with  the  loss  of  every  cent  he  possessed  and  a 
more  important  loss  of  prestige  for  his  car. 

All  during  the  rest  of  that  toilsome  after 
noon  his  thoughts  played  with  distracting  anx 
iety  around  the  one  problem:  How  could  he 
outwit  the  man  behind  him?  For  hours  Van- 
nuccini  managed  to  keep  just  at  their  heels 
when  there  was  a  bit  of  straightaway  driving, 
and  contrived  to  be  half  a  mile  behind  when 
the  trail  had  to  be  cleared  of  some  obstruction. 
Fleming  found  himself  wondering  savagely 
how  much  longer  it  would  be  before  he  lost 
control  of  himself;  he  said  to  himself  that  after 
he  had  cleared  the  way  once  more  he  was  going 
to  stand  up  in  his  car  and  plug  away  at  Van- 
nuccini's  front  tires  with  his  six-shooter. 

267 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

It  was  some  consolation  to  him  that  night 
was  coming  on.  If  they  had  to  camp  again 
that  night  Vannuccini  would  at  least  know 
what  it  was  to  go  without  breakfast — and  per 
haps  without  dinner  and  supper. 

"Lord!  will  we  ever  get  out  of  these 
woods?"  he  groaned  aloud  as  the  gleam  of 
water  through  low  branches  told  him  they  had 
come  to  another  swamp. 

In  the  forest  depths  a  somber  twilight  had 
already  gathered.  If  they  were  to  get  across 
the  swamp  before  dark  they  must  work  rap 
idly.  Fleming  and  Sid  waded  through  the 
sedgy  outskirts  until  they  reached  the  center  of 
the  swamp,  which  the  recent  storm  had  turned 
to  a  pool  of  unknown  depth. 

:'  There  isn't  more  than  six  inches  of  water," 
said  Sid,  who  had  gone  ahead  with  a  stick; 
"  but  the  bottom  is  soft  and  'most  as  sticky  as 
that  buffalo  wallow  we  broke  into  back  in  Ne 
braska.  It  will  need  a  good  heavy  corduroy 
for  both  cars,  won't  it?" 

Fleming  suddenly  threw  back  his  head  and 
laughed.  At  the  words  a  great  idea,  a  heaven 
sent  idea,  had  come  to  him.  He  took  his  little 
red-haired  mechanic  by  the  arm  and  said 
something  in  his  ear.  For  an  instant  Sid 
stared;  then  a  howl  of  joy  broke  from  him. 

268 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

He  cast  both  arms  around  Fleming  and  like 
a  couple  of  boys  they  pounded  each  other  on 
the  back  and  laughed  until  the  woods  rang. 
It  was  truly  a  droll  idea  that  Fleming  had 
got. 

"  Remember,  nothing  heavier  than  branches 
and  brush!"  he  cautioned  Sid,  "and  be  ready 
to  push  if  I  need  you." 

Sid  went  on  with  the  road-building,  while 
Fleming  carefully  adjusted  his  Weed  tire 
chains.  "I  don't  want  to  make  any  mistake 
in  this  dash  for  the  pole,"  he  grinned  at  Sid. 
Then  he  set  Hiram  to  work  unloading  every 
thing  that  could  possibly  be  carried,  to  lighten 
the  car.  Betty's  father  looked  puzzled.  He 
remarked  that  it  seemed  to  him  they  were  build 
ing  a  pretty  light  road. 

"  It's  heavy  enough  for  us! "  Jerry  laughed. 
"Now,  then,  both  of  you  get  out  of  the  way; 
I  want  plenty  of  room  for  this  trip." 

He  backed  the  car  a  little  to  get  a  running 
start.  Then  he  speeded  up  the  engine,  threw 
in  the  clutch  and  the  next  minute  in  one  grand 
splashing  spurt  the  little  car  had  thrashed  its 
way  into  the  center  of  the  swamp,  where  for 
an  instant  it  faltered. 

"  Now,  then,  push  for  your  life,  Sid ! " 
Fleming  called. 

269 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

Sid  dashed  to  the  rescue  and  Hiram  fol 
lowed,  inspired  by  a  swift  understanding  of 
this  maneuver.  With  their  united  shoulders 
to  the  back  of  the  lightened  car  they  gave  one 
tremendous  push  which  carried  it  over  the  dan 
ger-spot  before  the  light  brush  corduroy  gave 
way  under  the  weight  of  the  machine. 

;'  Wait  till  the  big  Superba  hits  that  soft 
spot,"  said  Sid. 

They  had  just  finished  reloading  when  Van- 
nuccini  drove  his  car  to  the  edge  of  the  swamp. 
With  entire  faith  that  he  could  do  what  from 
a  distance  he  had  just  seen  Fleming  do,  he 
drove  cautiously  through  the  outskirts  of  the 
swamp  and  onto  the  precarious  brush  road 
Fleming  and  Sid  had  built. 

Half  way  across,  without  an  instant's  warn 
ing,  the  big  car  with  two-thirds  of  its  weight 
in  front,  sank  until  the  two  front  wheels  had 
totally  disappeared.  The  road  that  had  been 
built  for  a  fifteen  hundred  pound  car  had 
given  way  under  the  four  thousand  pounds  of 
the  Superba,  and  in  two  minutes  it  was  as 
firmly  lodged  in  the  sticky  clay  of  the  swamp 
as  if  it  had  been  one  of  the  native  pines.  In 
every  sense  of  the  word  the  bottom  had 
dropped  out  of  things  for  Signor  Vannuc- 
cini! 

270 


CHAPTER    XXI 

A  GLORIOUS   afternoon;  a   magnifi 
cent  stretch   of  macadam  road,   with 
two  automobiles  following  a  battered 
blue  car — and  Portland  just  in  sight. 

"  Betty,"  Fleming  said,  "  will  you  pinch  me, 
please?  I  can't  believe  I'm  awake.  To  think 
that  I  am  here,  and  you  are  there,  and  in  ten 
minutes  we'll  pass  the  city  limits.  How  in  the 
world  did  you  ever  think  of  coming  out  to 
meet  me,  Betty?" 

'  Why,  because  I  couldn't  help  but  come. 
I'd  have  come  if  I'd  had  to  hire  a  delivery 
wagon.  When  you  telephoned  in  from  Salmon 
this  noon  that  you  were  within  forty  miles, 
I  told  Mrs.  Graham  I  had  to  meet  you  or  die ! 
She  has  the  fastest  car  in  Portland,  and  five 
minutes  after  your  'phone  message  we  were 
whizzing  out  here!  You  know,  wrhen  father 
declared  he  was  going  back  to  Wapinitia  to 
meet  you  I  wrent  to  stay  with  Mrs.  Graham. 
I  think  Dad  thought  I  might  come  tagging 
after  him  if  he  left  me  at  the  hotel!  And 
when  I  saw  him  coming  in  with  you,  I  was 

271 


THE    CAR    AND    THE    LADY 

speechless.  Why,  he  never  told  me  he  was 
going  to  come  on  with  you.  He  said  some 
thing  about  lumber  interests,  and  then  the 
first  thing  I  knew  he  was  off.  Is  he — do  you 
think  he  has  forgiven  you,  Jerry?" 

In  view  of  the  last  two  days'  events,  her 
anxious  tone  both  amused  and  touched  him. 

"  Dear  little  girl,"  he  said;  "  your  father  and 
I  understand  each  other  now.  We're  going  to 
be  regular  pals  from  this  time  on.  Read  that, 
Betty." 

He  passed  over  to  her  a  telegram  which  was 
signed  by  his  partners,  Walters  and  Cushman. 
It  ran: 

"  Congratulations.  Win  or  lose,  your  trip 
has  sold  more  cars  than  we  can  build  in  a  year. 
Hurry  back  and  help  us  fill  orders.  Entire 
country  talking  your  trip  and  our  car." 

"  Our  local  agent  met  me  in  Salmon  and 
gave  it  to  me,"  Fleming  explained,  "  and  I 
couldn't  resist  showing  it  to  your  father.  What 
do  you  suppose  he  said,  Betty? " 

"  Offered  you  a  partnership?" 

"  Right ;  that's  just  what  he  did, — but  there's 
more  than  that.  I  thanked  him  and  then  I  said 
as  solemn  as  an  owl:  'I'm  afraid  it's  out  of 

272 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

the  question,  sir.  I  couldn't  give  up  my  model, 
for,  you  see,  I'm  perfectly  satisfied  with  this 
car.'  And  the  old  gentleman  looked  up  at  me 
with  a  twinkle  in  his  eyes.  *  What's  that? 
What's  that?'  he  said;  'Who  said  anything 
about  giving  up  this  model?  Perfectly  sat 
isfied  with  it,  myself.  Ought  to  be  made  in  a 
big  factory  like  mine — the  American  car  for 
American  roads.' ' 

Betty  laughed  aloud.  "Why,  they're  your 
very  words !  I'd  like  to  know  what  you've  done 
to  Dad.  But  first  of  all,  I  want  to  know  what 
you've  done  to  Vannuccini." 

A  broad  smile  began  to  spread  over  Jerry's 
face. 

"  I  saw  him  last,"  he  said,  "  at  seven  o'clock 
this  morning.  He  was  footing  it  off  into  the 
backwoods  with  a  pair  of  whiffle-trees  over  his 
shoulders,  while  Jarvis  drove  a  team  of  horses 
intended  to  be  used  in  dragging  the  proud 
Superba  out  of  a  mud  hole." 

Betty's  eyes  were  of  a  saucer-like  roundness 
with  curiosity.  "  How  did  he  get  into  a  mud 
hole?  Where  is  he  now?  When  did  he — oh, 
begin  at  the  beginning  and  tell  it  all! " 

There  was  not  time  to  tell  it  all,  then  and 
there.  But  Jerry  hastily  sketched  for  her  their 
three  days'  struggle  over  Mount  Hood.  He 

273 


THE     CAR    AND     THE     LADY 

told  of  that  last  bit  of  road-building,  which 
had  proved  Vannuccini's  undoing,  and  of  their 
being  obliged  to  take  the  two  men  on  with 
them,  when  it  was  found  the  Superba  could 
not  possibly  be  extricated  without  horses. 

"  Couldn't  leave  them  there  in  the  woods, 
when  we  didn't  know  how  far  from  help  we 
were,"  he  said.  "  So  they  got  in.  We'd  made 
perhaps  six  miles  and  were  resigning  ourselves 
to  camping  for  the  night,  when  we  heard  a 
dog  bark.  Betty,  I  don't  believe  anything 
will  ever  give  me  the  wild  and  hilarious  joy 
I  felt  when  I  heard  that  dog.  Sid  said,  any 
way,  if  there  wasn't  a  house  we  could  eat  the 
dog.  We  crawled  up  the  trail  a  mile  farther, 
and  there  was  the  Government  camp.  You 
can't  imagine  how  queer  it  is  to  wander  for 
three  days  through  the  wilderness  and  then 
come  out  suddenly  upon  a  neat,  prosperous 
little  white  house,  with  green  blinds  and  posy 
beds!" 

'  But  the  people  must  have  been  as  sur 
prised  as  you  were!  "  Betty  exclaimed. 

"  Surprised!  If  we  had  dropped  from  the 
clouds  they  couldn't  have  been  more  aston 
ished.  They  wouldn't  believe  we  had  made  the 
pass  in  the  car  till  we  had  proved  it  by  describ 
ing  the  trail.  And  then  Mrs.  Yoakuin  cooked 

274 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

us  a  supper  that  none  of  us  will  forget  right 
away.  Betty,  I  wish  you  could  have  seen  your 
father  eat!  We  had  to  forcibly  restrain  him 
from  the  biscuit  and  honey.  Think  of  bis 
cuit  and  honey  after  three  days  of  coffee  and 
nothing  else  in  particular !  We  ate  until  it  was 
a  physical  impossibility  to  eat  any  more,  and 
then  we  sat  and  looked  at  the  food  that  was 
left  on  the  table.  Before  we  went  to  bed  we 
ate  again,  and  next  morning — well,  you  ask 
your  father  how  many  buckwheat  cakes  he 
caused  to  vanish !  " 

"And  the  Signor — was  his  appetite  good? 
Do  you  think  he  realized  he  was  beaten  then? " 

"  Oh,  he  knew  it  was  all  up  with  him  when 
Yoakum  refused  to  let  his  team  go  till  morn 
ing.  He  was  wild.  I  think  he  would  have 
gone  back  to  the  car  and  worked  in  the  dark 
if  he  could  have  got  a  team.  But  even  Jarvis 
went  back  on  him.  He  told  Vannuccini  it 
was  his  own  fault  that  the  car  was  stuck,  and 
the  Italian  got  into  a  rare  old  rage.  You  see, 
Betty,  it  was  a  tough  situation  for  him.  He 
had  lost  the  race,  and  lost  it  through  his  own 
laziness,  and  he  knew  that  we  all  knew  it.  He 
isn't  a  fool,  and  he  is  no  incompetent.  Even 
Jarvis  admitted  that  he  could  work  like  a  de 
mon,  if  he  had  to,  but— 

273 


THE     CAR    AND     THE    LADY 

"  There,"  said  Betty,  "  we've  had  enough 
Vannuccini.  He's  out  of  our  lives  now,  and 
we'll  forget  him.  Oh,  look!  There's  the  city 
limit  post.  Stop  the  car  and  let  the  others 
catch  up.  I'd  like  the  whole  world  to  know 
you've  won ! " 

They  stood  up  in  the  car  and  turned  their 
backs  to  the  setting  sun,  as  they  waited  for 
the  two  cars  with  Mrs.  Graham  and  Betty's 
father,  Sid  and  Fleming's  local  agent  with  his 
friends  to  overtake  them.  As  their  hands  met, 
there  was  a  light  in  their  two  faces  which  was 
not  of  the  sun. 

"  Have  I  made  good,  Betty? "  he  asked  her 
softly. 

She  only  nodded;  but  in  her  eyes  there  was 
a  glorious  look  of  pride  and  happiness  and 
belief. 


THE     END 


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